67th Hunger Games
by Mina Phantomhive
Summary: The story of Mia Pearl, a girl from District 4, the victor of the 67th Hunger Games. I tried to keep it as canon as possible ;)
1. Before the Games prt 1

I was looking outside the train's window but I saw nothing at all. My vision was blurred, my head heavy. The last weeks of my life were mostly like a dream, a horrific nightmare, and less like reality.

My reality was the sea. The vast ocean of District 4. The shores with the golden sand, the port with the old fishing boats. Weaving firm nets and diving in search of shells and oysters. A reality that embraced me, and tucked me in every night. Made me feel safe as the sea's lullaby shaped my most beautiful dreams.

And now every single one of these dreams became a goddamn nightmare. I was a tribute. A fucking tribute to a sick Capitol game. I was on my way to participate in the Hunger Games. I don't really remember how things got this far. The only thing I can vividly remember hearing my named called during the Reaping.

"Mia Pearl".

As simple as that. I froze still, unable to walk, or by any means get on the platform. I had to be pushed by the people around me. Pushed and get shoulder-pats out of sympathy... Sympathy because for them, I was already dead. Not that I minded. I myself thought the same. I still do.

Probably the only person that doesn't is Finnick. The famous Finnick Odair. My mentor.

"Hey Mia. Are you ok?" he asked me, concern imminent in his voice, as he walked into my personal wagon.

"Nothing. I am just motion-sick." poor excuse. I don't even know how motion-sickness feels. I've been on a fishing boat every day since I was 4 years old and able to help. If a boat cought up in a storm couldn't make me motion-sick, this train didn't really stand a chance.

"We need to talk for a while." he sat next to me. I really didn't feel like talking. Damn, I didn't even feel like breathing.

"Ok." I mumbled, hoping I could help him realize I wanted to be left alone.

"I know how you feel. I might have been a Career, but I didn't volunteer. I was reaped too young to be ready for it. Just like you." he started.

"Finnick I don't wanna talk about it." I was a bit more straight forward now.

"It doesn't matter what you want. Because whether you like it or not, you are getting out of these games ALIVE. You are gonna be the 67th Hunger Games victor." he said, skipping introductions, his voice full of determination.

"Why me? Why not Michael?" I asked, honestly full of questions. My mentor, a well-known and talented victor had picked me. The other tribute from my District was a 17-year-old Career. How the hell could a 16-year-old fisher-girl be any match for him?

"Because you have the ocean in your eyes." he answered simply, and I took sometime to ponder what he meant. By "you have the ocean in your eyes" in District 4 we mean that someone is full of strength and determination. But I was only full of fear and doubts. And will to live. His words made me realize it. The only reason I was so confused, buffled and scared was that I didn't want to die. I sure as hell didn't.

"I want to live." I admitted after some moments of silence, looking at him deep within his green eyes.

"I know you do. And this is why I picked you, Mia." those words were enough to fill me up with newborn hope. The odds are never in our favor, but at least right now, for the first time in weeks, it didn't really feel like they were totally against me either. "Tonight we start training. I'll teach how to use a knife, a sword, a trident and even your bare hands as lethal weapons. You are fit and strong for a girl your age, so you'll have no problem." he added. At least I wasn't going to the Games totally unprepared. It was something.


	2. Before the Games prt 2

"You look astonishing." Finnick noticed.

"I know." I answered. My dress was undoubtedly the prettiest, and boldest, dress I've worn in my life. Deep blue with white details that represented the waves of my homeland's ocean. Almost my entire back and abdomen were showing and even though the dress was long a huge cut over my left leg exposed both my legs and bare feet too. Still, I didn't feel uncomfortable. In District's 4 port and fishing boats we were usually wearing even less.

"Make them know." he said, putting special emphasis on that. He proceeded into fixing a strand of my curly hair that escaped my deliberately messy ponytail. He then took something out of his pocket. A small, perfectly shaped pearl run through a tiny piece of plastic fishing line. A gift from home.

"Consider it a good luck charm, miss Pearl." he said and tied the pearl around my hand.

"Thanks.." was all that I could whisper, full of gratitude.

"Thank me by staying alive." he answered and gave me a wide smile. I smiled back at him and nodded positively. Staying alive was exactly what I was going to do.

Finnick left, as it was about time for me and Michael to get on our chariot. Michael was shirtless, wearing a plain pair of pants made out of rough canvas, just like my dress, though his looked even more unrefined. A complex long shell necklace was hanging from his neck, way more impressive than mine, that looked a lot more delicate though. However, together we looked like a beautiful couple, strong and bold just like the ocean. I silently thanked our stylist, well-aware of the importance of a good first impression.

As our chariot was speeding up, rapidly approaching the entrance, I took some time to notice the other District's chariots too.

The tributes from District 1 were dressed up in feathers and glitter, representing their luxury industry. I remembered the girl's name from watching the Reaping. Lux Adams, a fifteen year old Career. I couldn't remember the boy's name, but he was a Career too.

District's 2 tributes followed, dressed up like roman gladiators. Pretty fitting to their District's heavy industry, masonry. I was mainly concerned about the male tribute, Basil, a 17 year old Career that gladly volunteered. His cold stare was intimidating at best.

District's 3 tributes, right in front of us, were dressed up in metallic colors, with wires attached onto their clothes, representing the rapidly developing technology of their District. Behind us, the tributes of District 5 dressed in gold, like the golden rays of the sun that fueled their homeland's power industry. Tributes from District 6 represented "transportation" in bright red motocycle helmets. District's 7 tributes were impressive in their bright green clothes and beautiful branch wreaths, representing the lumber industry.

Tributes from District 8 were dressed in a wide variety of different fabrics that created a beautiful and strangely harmonic result. What did I expect from a district specializing in textile making? The tributes from District 9 looked much alike to those of 5, though their golden dresses represented vast grain fields. District's 10 tributes were dressed up like cowboys, representing their District's industry, livestock, and the two children from District 11 were dressed up in flowers and bright colours, for agriculture. I remembered the girl, Alexia Flowers, from the Reaping, since her blonde hair and fair complexion truly stood out, comparing to the chocolate brown skin and black hair that characterized her District's population. She and her District partner were holding hands all the time, as if they were draining strength from each other.

Last but not least, the tributes from District 12, a girl I recognised from the reaping, Ellie Craig, and a young boy whose kind eyes made me question how long he would survive in the arena. They were dressed in black leather, with some red details, representing coal mining.

There was no more time for observation as now we were entering the stadium, the main part of the Training Centre. The audience was all around us, shouting, applauding and cheering. Me and Michael raised our hands, while at the same time waving to the crowd. I tried to wear my brightest smile, even though the only thing I felt for those people was pure disgust. They enjoyed this parade of soon-to-be dead children. They enjoyed these horrible Games... At least our appearance didn't go unnoticed. No other chariot was cheered more than ours, with District's 7 and 12 chariots closely following. We were undoubtedly the highlights of this freak-show.


	3. Before the Games prt3

"And now let's all welcome Mia Pearl, District's 4 female tribute!" Ceasar Flickerman announced my appearance.

I walked onto the stage, towards him. I thanked my stylist for allowing me to stay barefoot as she deemed necessary only a beautiful painting of the waves and seabirds on my legs, exposed yet again from the cut of my dress. My steps were steady and fast-paced, just like the way Finnick instructed me. I waved at the audience and smiled at them as bright as I could. Their applause indicated that all this facade wasn't in vain.

"Mia Pearl.. As I see your dress is fitting to your beautiful name." Ceasar noticed, refering to my beautiful black and blue dress. It was strapless, long and decorated with beautiful white sea shells and shiny pearls. Countless shiny pearls. I bet my stylist was aiming for a "name pun".

"Thank you Ceasar. It is definitely the most beautiful thing I've worn in my life." I admitted.

"Beautiful indeed. Beautiful and appropriate for a girl from your District, don't you agree?" he asked me, trying to get me to talk about my homeland. Challenge accepted.

"Of course I agree. District 4... You should visit it sometime, if you haven't already, Ceasar. We have much more than fish and handsome victors to offer you know." I was sure Finnick was smiling somewhere in the audience. He had a sweet tooth for flattering.

"Every citizen of Capitol, and especially the ladies, are pretty gratefull for those things though." he laughed, almost blinding me with his snow-white teeth. Goddammit, did he bleach them white or something? Still, I ignored his unnatural smile and laughed with his little joke about Finnick being a ladies man. The entire audience seemed amused too.

"Still I wonder... What else does your District have to offer? What else do you people do?" he asked, his voice indicating genuine curiosity.

"What else do we do... Well, when we are not fishing we are either taking long walks on the beautiful shores with the golden sand, we are swimming in the turqoise blue waters, we are searching for shells around the rocks. We hang out, light fires on the beach, sing around them." my own words filled me with nostalgia for my home. I felt my eyes tearing up, but I forced my tears to run dry. I was gonna see my District again.

"Oh, and we also breathe. Because sometimes, Capitol seems to forget we are human at all." I added, seconds after my initial statement. It was too bold, and I knew it. But how could I ever forgive my self if I silenced my voice to play Capitol's sweetheart? Ceasar seemed a bit uncomfortable with my comment, so he rushed to return the conversation to my previous statement.

"So, in your District people like singing. Could you sing something for us?" he asked. His offer really got me unprepared. I love singing, and most say I have a pleasant voice. But singing in front of the entire Panem? My audience was usually 10 to 20 tired fishermen... Oh well. What did I have to lose anyways?

"I am not the best my District has to offer in terms of musical talent, but I can give it a try." I answered and took a deep breath to prepare my voice.

_Will you, will you come along with me? _

_Beneath the waves, within the sea? _

_Here, the dolphins sing a lullaby _

_Will you, will you listen to it with me? _

_Here, the water makes you feel you fly _

_Will you, will you fly away with me? _

_Will you, will you come along with me? _

_Here, beneath the waves, where we can both be free? _

_Will you, will you come along with me? _

_Beneath the waves, withing the sea?_

As I finished singing this melody from home, silence covered the entire stadium. This thick, almost tactile silence lasted for some seconds, only to be shattered from the loudest applause I've heard in my life.

"Oh my, not only you look like a mermaid, you also sing like the most enchanting siren!" Ceasar commented, genuinely impressed.

"Thank you Ceasar. It's was a great honor, singing in front of the entire Panem!" at least I wasn't lying. Singing for the Capitol wasn't really inspiring, but gifting a careless moment to the people of the wounded, tortured Districts... That was worth it.

"It was an honor listening to your beautiful voice, Mia. I truly hope we will listen to it again. May the odds be ever in your favor!" he concluded. It was about time I left the stage, for the next tributes to follow. About time. The tributes from District 1 and 2 came before me, giving boring speeches about the glory of Capitol and the honor of representing their Districts in the Games. Damn they made me sick. Especially that Basil, who assured Ceasar that he would be taking his interview again, after he won the Games. How I wanted to erase that arrogant smile off his face.

Michael's interview followed mine. He was much more reserved, sticking to answering Ceasar's questions. At least, he didn't appear full of himself. I never liked him much, but at least he didn't seem happy about all this... Because all the other Careers did. He did this for the money that would help his family, not the fame or the joy of killing. I could at least respect him for that.

The tributes from District 5 were both quite shy and distant. From their interviews I learnt that they were cousins. I immediately felt terribly sorry for their families. Losing one child is terrible itself, but losing two of them... That must be beyond hard. District's 6 tributes gave me the impression of trapped birds, like the seagulls some of the fishermen kept in cages in order to teach them to fish for them later. They must have been cheerful and kind children before all this. They boy was 13 years old, too young and innocent, just like the girl, Pamela Baker, even though must have been 15 years old at least.

District's 7 boy Nathan Ryan played a very clever trick. He mentioned his sweetheart back home, a 17 year old girl named Mary, to whom he got engaged to right after the Reaping as: "There was no time to waste." This move certainly got him a handful of sponsors, since Capitol's citizens were dying for a nice dramatic romance.

"We should pretend we are a couple." I heard the two tributes from District 11 discussing.

"Hell no, Mark! We could say we are related though." Alexia was clearly joking. Her milkish white skin would have made it hard to pretend she was related to me with my fairly tanned complexion, let alone Mark with his chocolate brown skin. I laughed slightly, and I saw Alexia's eyes meeting mine. She smiled at me, in a friendly way that almost shocked me. So far I couldn't be friendly towards no one of the tributes, knowing that probably I would have to kill them in the arena. Still, her smile changed something. These were probably our last days alive. We couldn't ruin them by being ice cold, could we? So I smiled back at her.

Both children from District 8 barely said a word. The were truly nervous and their hands were shaking all the time, as the rythmic motion of their long sleeves showed. They were both wearing long sleeves and gloves, probably because their hands were full of scars from the various machinery used inside the factories. I couldn't even imagine the pain of having your finger pierced by a needle.

The girl from District 9, a beautiful, blonde girl in a long, white dress, that seemed really kind and honest in her interview caught my eye.

"Ceasar, I am not gonna lie to you. I am not happy to be in the Games. I am terrified. In less than three days I will be thrown in an arena and I will be asked to kill. I am no killer. But I can't stand there and get myself killed either." It was a simple realisation, but it truly touched me. She wasn't afraid to speak the truth, even though she did it in a much more reserved manner than mine. All I could see in the audience were buffled faces. Behind all our pretend and bright smiles that attracted sponsors they have truly forgotten that we are human. Maybe because we were too afraid to show it.

I don't remember much from the interview of the tributes from District 10, but I noted to myself that I should keep an eye on them. I doubt butchering animals and butchering tributes is in any way similar, but caution never hurt anybody. Those children most definitely knew how to handle a knife.

Next was Alexia from District 11. She wasn't wearing a dress, but a pair of bright yellow pants and a matching shirt. Her shoes were white and flat, pretty cute and girly-like, perfectly matching the white flowers that decorated her fairly short blonde hair.

"The worst thing about these Games for me is that I will be competing against my childhood friend, Mark. The idea that either one of us or none of us is going to be alive in a couple of days from now really breaks my heart." she admitted. That must have been horrible. At least I was competing against people I barely even knew. Alexia took some more time to talk about her District, the tall trees, the flowery fields and the crystal clear rivers. It must have been a beautiful place to live in. Ceasar asked her if she had any special past-time or talent, something he asked every single tribute after my performance. She answered a simple "no". Her answer was hiding a lot. So was her partner, Mark, that simply repeated what she had said. They were both pretty secretive, though no one could blame them. Keeping your tactics for the Games secret ensured your survival a lot more than being an open book.

The girl from District 12 followed:

"From District 12 let's welcome Ellie Craig!" Ceasar announced her. She was beautiful in her short black dress that ended with a beautiful pattern of flames. Her shoes were of the same color pallete, black, grey and crimson, though they left a great part of her feet exposed, to show a beautiful temporary flame tattoo. Her appearance really stroke an impression, but it was all that I expected. Her District counted only one winner, Heymitch Abernathy, who, despite his drinking problem, was trying his best to expand the victor's catalogue. And between her and the twelve year old boy that would barely last a minute in the arena it can't have been tough for Heymitch to choose to fully support her.

Ceasar noticed how beautiful her dress was and commented on that. She casually answered:

"Well since they ripped every single hair off my legs, I might as well show them."

The audience laughed at her simple way. And their laughter was renewed when she offered to lend her dress to Ceasar since he liked it so much. That statement brought an honest smile to my face. Ellie then proceeded to assure Ceasar she was joking. He later asked her what she thought about the Games. She was again honest, admitting that she had come to terms with the fact that her life could be terminated at every second after her first entrance in the arena.

"Still you might be this year's winner." Ceasar commented.

"Yes, it's a possibility. And like I've heard many times befores: May the odds be ever in our favor..." she answered simply, with a tone of melancholy in her voice. She then proceeded in leaving the stage.

As she went down the stairs I heard her whispering: "As if this line could bring us luck in any way..."

"The odds are never in our favor." I answered and looked at her in the eyes. She returned the stare and smiled at me, as she nodded in agreement.


	4. Before the Games prt4

"What you did in the interview was stupid. Brave, but stupid." Finnick said, looking at me deep within the eyes.

"What? Singing?" I asked, pretending I didn't understand what he was talking about.

"No, Mia. Reminding them we are human." he answered, ignoring my facade.

"They don't want to get reminded. They don't want to know. You seem to forget they are human too. The Games are disgusting, and they know it. They have children too. But they realize that the Games are neccesary. They are neccessary because they terrify us. And if one day we stop being terrified, a revolution will begin. And once this revolution begins, the Capitol will fall. They are human, and they are afraid of that. So they'd rather pretend your life is nothing more than a chance to keep them amused and go on with their own swallow lives. Do you understand?" he explained to me, in an honest manner that shocked me. I didn't expect him to open up like that, especially inside a Capitol building, but I was sure he knew what he was doing. He must have checked the abandoned basement we used for training before talking like that.

"Yes I do Finnick. But still I am not gonna do them the favor. I am not gonna let them live happily oblivious while my life is endagered like that. I want them to suffer as much as I can." I felt anger running through my veins as I spoke these words. The anger that made me say what I said in the interview.

"Mia, whether you like it or not, your life depends on those people. For now and forever. I'm not asking you to be Capitol's sweetheart. You definitely suck at that. But I'm asking you to keep a low profile. To stay alive!" he repeated what he told be back in the train. He reminded me what my main purpose was. His only arguement that could tame my rebellious nature.

"Ok Finnick. I won't say I am sorry. Cause I am not. But I will tell you that I am not gonna do something like that again. Not until the Games end, that is. It's a promise." I answered, making a promise I intend to keep.

"...I guess I will settle for that. At least if you get yourself killed after the Games I won't be blaming myself." he answered. There was some doubt in his voice though. Something told me that, even I died AFTER the Games by the Capitol's hand, he'd still be blaming himself.

"Oh, I forgot. You have an amazing voice. Probably the only reason you didn't completely sabotage your chances of finding sponsors without my help." he complimented me in a very reserved manner. Probably because he didn't want to boost my rebellious nature once more, by implying a mere song could possibly undo an opposition against the Capitol. Well, I wasn't that naive.

"Thanks Finnick. But still, I am counting on your help you know." I added. Finnick was extremely talented in convincing people to go his way, just like the current that gently carries you away in its direction. I was sure he could convince one of his various Capitol "loves" to help me out in the arena.

"Keep counting on it, cause it's the one thing you will surely have in the arena." he assured me right away.

"I know. You are a man of your word." I added.

"You are the first one to ever tell me that. Most say that my promises fly away faster than mockingjays." he commented on my statement about him. Practically he was right. Finnick must have promised his eternal love and devotion to half the Capitol's female population at some point in his life. But eternity didn't seem to have the same meaning for him.

"Your promises to the Capitol. Your promises to those who torture, opress and treat us like playthings. I am not from Capitol, Finnick. My home is District 4. I have the ocean in my eyes, just like you. Just like everyone in our District. So for me, you are a man of your word." I answered, mentioning what he seemed to have completely forgotten. Finnick never broke a promise he made to us. His neighbours, friends and family. Even though every Capitol woman desired him, who did he truly love? Annie Cresta, a poor girl from our District. He never broke a promise to her.

"If you can read my secrets like that, Mia, you have some real chances out there. There isn't a human you can't read like an open book." he commented.

"Out there? In the arena?" I asked, wanting some more specificity from him.

"No. Not only there. In life. You have real chances in life." he explained to me. His words got me by surprise. Since the Reaping I didn't think about my future. Not a single thought extended beyond the Games. I didn't dare, I mean, how could I? It was tough already to accept that every dream I had once dreamt was gone, like sand in the wind. All those dreams, about getting my own boat one day. About becoming a captain, and leading a comfortable life. About getting happily married. About having children in a free Panem. Some were plausible, some others weren't. But still, it hurted like hell to bid them goodbye. Finnick's words gave me a glimmer of hope. A hope that maybe I could dream again.


	5. Before the Games prt5

I took a deep breath and opened the door of the Training Room. I couldn't have picked a worse hour to visit. My eyes scanned the room as I realised that there wasn't a single tribute missing. 23 people were training around the various stations. And, since I had already made an appearance by opening the door, there were soon to be 24.

Almost every tribute took some time to stare at me as I walked into the room. That was expected though. It was the first time I visited the Training Room, since I felt like training with Finnick offered me a lot more than some speed "how-to-survive" classes. Still, taking sometime to watch the other tributes train and discover their strengths and weaknesses was essential if I wanted to be prepared for what I would face in the arena. I could turn the knowledge into an advantage, but only as long as I kept my own tactics secret, just like Finnick suggested.

My first stop was the knot-tying station. The class had already begun and three tributes, from District 5,6 and 9 respectively, were trying to follow the instructor's order to create a fishnet out of thin rope. I asked the instructor if I could join them, and as he nodded positively I took an empty seat near the other tributes. I took some time to notice which technique the instructor was using for the fishnet. Once I understood the patern in which his fingers were skillfully moving, it was easy for me to follow. It took me less than 10 minutes to finish up. The instructor smiled at me and observed my work.

"Girl, you are wasting your time here. You are beyond my teaching skills you know." he noticed. For the first time he wasn't hiding his intense accent. He was most definitely from District 4 too.

"This station reminded me of home." I answered and he smiled at me in a very nostalgic manner. I wondered when was the last time he has set his eyes onto the ocean of our homeland.

"It sure did. But now go and find yourself a challenge. Seeking challenges is what we do at home too, right?" he asked me. I nodded in agreement as I realised how true his words were.

"Right."

My next stop was the basic survival skills station. Lighting fires, telling apart poisonous plants from non-poisonous plants. I spent an hour or so, silently taking notes. The tributes from District 7,8 and 11 were there too. I understood why someone that was raised in an ugly industrial city would want to learn how to survive out in the open, but the children from Districts 7 and 11 had no reason to be there at all. I couldn't judge them though. Maybe they wanted something to remind them of home, just like I did.

"How do you tell apart nightlock berries from harmless ones?" I asked simply, interrupting the instructor, since she rushed and didn't really explain much about berries. Still, I wanted to know more. In the history of the Games berries killed more people than any other poisonous food or drink.

"It's their smell. Nightlock berries smell like almonds." Alexia, the girl from District 11, answered. Seeing her talking to anyone else except her friend Mark was quite the shock. Still I was sure she used to be a pretty fun and outgoing girl before the Games. I could see that in her eyes, the way she looked at people full of kindness and optimism that had no place here. She really wasn't the type that should be participating in these horrible Games. But, after all, who was?

I felt tempted to visit the various fighting stations but I decided to head to the camouflage station before the physical effort I would have to invest into fighting exhausted me. The camouflage station was practically empty, since only Ellie from District 12 was there. Once she saw me approaching she welcomed me with a reserved smile, a welcome much warmer than I would have expected. I smiled back at her. I might have tried to keep my distance from all those people I would have to kill or let die to survive but keeping up that facade wasn't that easy after all. And I deserved a break.

I always had an artistic nature, and drawing was always one of my favorite past-times. In District 4 there was always a lot of time to kill, especially on the fishing boats where I spent so much time. Sometimes you had to wait for hours for a herd of fish to get caught up in your nets. And since singing, my favorite past-time, would scare them away, I started drawing. I started when I was still young and impatient, but my passion about it grew as the years passed.

Still I've only worked with paper. Drawing on my skin was a challenge, but with the trainer's help the results were pretty satisfying. Both me and Ellie were quick learners and soon we started drawing on each other's arms, while our instructor, a silent and reserved man from District 6, watched us.

"What do you want me to draw for you?" Ellie asked me while mixing her colours with water. I took sometime to think about it and then answered:

"I want you to draw me something from your District. And I will draw you something from mine."

"I like that idea." she answered simply and started mixing a nice bright red. In less than 10 minutes a perfectly shaped rose on fire was depicted in my arms. The rose was black but the flames illuminated a perfect crimson light onto it. It was beautiful.

"Thanks." I whispered in awe. I had to do my best in order to create something that beautiful. I decided to mix a beautiful bright blue and a deeper shade of turqoise as basic colors and experiment for the rest. I started drawing huge waves all over her arm and as I proceeded I decided what I actually wanted to draw. I drew a girl riding a dolphin through the ravaging waves, beautiful and intense. It took me a while, 5 minutes or so, but the result was worth it. I then added some sea shells and of course my "signature" and oyster with a single bright pearl within it.

"This is beautiful too... All those details... Thank you Mia." Ellie commented on my work. Our style of drawing was indeed very different, mine being detailed while hers being roughly beautiful. In a way it was a mere reflection of who we were, just like the themes of our drawings. I was just a fisher-girl from District 4, patience and salt water run through my veins like blood, while Ellie was more of the fiery impatient type.

The instructor then instructed us to draw something a bit more practical. I managed to turn my leg into a perfect brick wall while Ellie prefered to disguise her other arm as a leafy bush. After completing the challenge I decided to walk away from the station, alone, since Ellie remained. I really wanted to follow her lead and stay there too, but I couldn't. I had to visit the fighting stations and spy on the real threat: the Careers.

Bare-handed brawl, knives, even swords. The fighting stations were there to teach us all about them. It was about time to use the experience I gained from training with Finnick. At the knives' station I first realized how good my aim was. I could throw a knife and hit the bull's eye from any distance. But I really was hoping that I wouldn't have to use that skill of mine. It was too back-stabbing for my taste.

As I proceeded into the swords and bare-handed brawl station I could only thank Finnick for his amazing teaching skills. I was only an amateur but still, only the Careers could complete with me, and it wasn't easy for them either. Thanks to Finnick I had come far since my name was first reaped for the Games. Back then all I could do was punch or kick an annoying fisher-boy or two. Now I could undoubtedly kill. I wasn't sure if that evolution satisfied me, but it certainly reassured me.

"She is just a fisher-bitch and you let her defeat you! You loser. You don't even deserve to be called a Career!" I overheard Basil, the tribute from District 2, arguing with the girl from his District after I defeated her in a sword duel.

"How the hell did you call me?" he was way out of line since he first walked into the Training Centre and announced that he was gonna be this year's victor. But now he just got too far.

"A fisher-bitch. Who do you think you are? Just because you are flirting or god knows what you're doing with your mentor in exchange for some cheap tricks you think you have any chances on the arena?" he added. His insults didn't make me any angrier. Just more determined to wipe that arrogant smile off his face.

"At least I have more chances than you, bastard. You are nothing more than a mere pawn." my words were simple but wounded his pride. So instead of laughing it off he decided to attack me full-front, to prove everyone that he wasn't gonna be surpassed by no one, even in words. He was way more strong than me but I was quicker. I easily avoided him and as he fell down and tried to grab me again I simply turned around and punched him with all my strength. The instructor interfered and separated us, but not before I broke his nose, which was bleeding all over his face.

I'd like to say that I got out unharmed, but I wasn't. I felt that a huge bruise was starting to appear right underneath my ribcage, from where he managed to grab me when I punched him. Well, at least I could hide that.

"If you wanna kill each other you will have plenty opportunities during the Games!" the instructor scolded us with anger imminent in his voice.

"The training is over for the day. All tributes shall return to their rooms!" a loud and clear announcement from the speakers all around the room didn't leave us any other option but to obey.

"He will remember that. Be careful." whispered Alexia near my ear as we were all leaving. I couldn't really find any good answers. A part of me wanted to whisper "it doesn't matter", and believe it. But the truth was, it did matter.

I made Basil an enemy. And he was a dangerous one...


	6. Before the Games prt6

"Brought booze!" Ellie announced as she made her way towards our company again. I couldn't imagine a better way to spend my penultimate night before the Games. My head was already heavy from the first bottle we shared, and her return with two more was promising indeed. I needed more than a heavy head to forget that I was rapidly marching towards the Games that were to determine whether I would live or die, with the odds being ever against me.

The sun had already set but the Capitol's sky was still dyed in deep crimson and lighter purple colors. The view up from the Training Centre's roof was breathtaking and the sky was definitely a beautiful sight, alongside with all the skyscrapers and modern residencies. I often had to remind myself that the Capitol obtained all this luxury by taking advantage and oppressing the districts. I always had a soft spot for anything beautiful, but I didn't want this to affect me here. No matter how beautiful the Capitol was, I was not gonna become just another "play-thing" for its citizens. The ocean of my District was way more beautiful and real than all this pretend around me.

Ellie passed me one of the bottles and I took a huge ship of the strong alcoholic beverage it contained. After I drank Mark asked me to pass it to him and so I did. I had decided to head to the roof after my training, to let some of my tension off. But once I got up here I realized I wasn't the only one that thought the same. Alexia, Mark and Nathan, the boy from District 7 were already there.

One part of me truly wanted to hang around and let my troubles go for a while, but another part didn't. Did I really want to come closer to those people I'd probably have to kill or watch get killed without doing anything? I didn't. But I had to. Cause otherwise I would be no better than any Capitol citizen. Closing my eyes and pretending that the tributes aren't human. We are human. And we had better act like that while we still could. So making my decision wasn't that hard after all. And when Ellie arrived with Heymitch's, her mentor's, booze, and shared it with us, I was glad that I decided to stick around.

"How did you manage to get more of it?" I asked. Her mentor's love for alcohol was renowned, and I wasn't sure it would be that easy to sneak around and take two more of this bottles.

"Well, he was sleeping. All I had to do was keep quiet and be prepared to avoid a knife if he woke up." Ellie answered and all of us bursted in laughter.

"What a hothead." Alexia commented and smiled.

"He sure as hell is. But he is a good mentor." Ellie added. It was the first time I heard her saying something good for Heymitch. Their relationship was good, but tense.

"Blight is a hothead too. He kept pushing me to announce my engagement with Mary, and after all, it was a smart move. So I give him that." Nathan commented, referring to his interview, in which he showed the entire Panem the picture of his fiancee, a young girl from his District.

"So you really are engaged..." Ellie said and Nathan answered:

"Yes, I am. We got engaged after the Reaping. It wasn't a made-up story."

Most of us assumed that. In the interviews almost everything was made up, since no tribute risked to speak up his mind and lose possible sponsors.

"Finnick wanted me and Michael to play lovebirds. But I sure as hell wouldn't do that." I said, returning to the previous issue of the discussion. I didn't really wanted to end up talking about the people we left behind, just like Nathan left Mary.

"You could play lovebirds with Finnick you know." Alexia commented and the whole company laughed. I blushed for reasons I can't really explain and proceeded into answering:

"Alexia, I need to gain sponsors, not lose them. If I played up a romance with Finnick half the Capitol's female population would want me dead." I was being totally honest. But still I wanted to clarify some more things:

"After all, nothing is going on between me and him. He is just the best mentor I could possibly have. I respect him for that. He is trying hard."

"I didn't really think something was going one between you two anyways. Only the Careers do." Nathan added, referring to Basil statement in the training room.

"They can think of whatever they like. It's none of their concern, those bastards." Ellie commented on Nathan's statement. Her hate towards the Career's was a fiery one, and I couldn't really put my finger on the source.

"Especially that Basil..I hope that by breaking his nose you also helped in breaking his ridiculously gigantic ego too." she finished her words, without a single word to explain the reasons that fueled her hate. And since she didn't want to share it, who was I to pressure her?

I asked Nathan to give me one of the bottles and I took a large sip. The alcohol was too strong for my taste and it was burning my throat, but it wasn't really the time to be picky. I just wanted to get drunk.

"Do you have families back home?" Ellie asked and I couldn't help but look at her with an angered stare. I was here, drinking way more than I could handle, to forget, not to remember.

"I have my parents and two older siblings. A sister and a brother." Alexia answered Ellie's question.

"Me too." was my simple reply. Me and Alexia apparently has a similar family pattern, and I had no reason not to take advantage of it to talk as little as possible.

"I have my grandparents. Just that." Mark's words really broke my heart. How would his grandparent's live through losing him?

"I only got Mary. I am an orphan." Nathan replied in a nostalgic manner.

"And I got a mother and two siblings. An older and a younger brother." Ellie was the first to make the question and the last to answer it. A deep silence followed this personal question. We kept drinking and staring at the illuminating night sky. I could feel my stomach aching and my head hurt like hell but I didn't mind. As long as I felt numb and my sorrow couldn't take shape, I was fine.

Now I could realise why Heymitch, Ellie's mentor, had given into alcohol, and why all those renowned victors were suffering from all sorts of addictions. Pain and suffering is in the nature of the Games. I doubt they were gonna go away, even if I managed to get out of the arena alive.

"I'm afraid." I whispered softly, after finishing the second bottle. I didn't really mean to open myself up like that, but it just came out spontaneously. I guess alcohol does that.

"I am too." Nathan admitted and the rest of the company nodded in agreement.

"I am not afraid of dying though. I am afraid of losing myself." Alexia commented in an almost breaking voice. I could deeply understand her. I was afraid of having to stain my hands with blood too. But if she wasn't afraid of death, I doubt the choice would be a difficult one. I couldn't blame her for giving up, even though I'd never do it.

"I am afraid of dying in the hands of an enemy. I always wanted to die surrounded by the people I love." Mark's words touched me too. How did I want to die? I think my answer was by the sea. Hearing the lullaby of the waves for one last time.

"I am just afraid. Of everything." Ellie said, and I looked at her with sympathy. I felt the same.

"I am mostly afraid of how much I want to survive. I am not sure I can hold on to who I am and stay alive at the same time. And when I have to make my choice... Damn, I don't know." I was being too honest. But we had all drunk so much I doubted we would remember this conversation in the morning.

"Nobody knows. That's the scary part. When people are afraid, they act like animals." Mark said simply and Nathan added:

"We are nothing more than animals after all."

"No. We are. An animal would just kill. They wouldn't be concerned about all these." Alexia replied.

"I doubt you'll be too concerned when your life will be at stake." Nathan insisted.

"She will be. We will all be. But it's almost certain we'll do it anyways." I answered and got up from the cold cement floor. I could barely walk in a straight line, but my room wasn't far away. I hoped I could manage to get there without breaking any more ribs than the ones Basil broke.

"Goodnight." Ellie whispered.

"Goodnight."


	7. Before the Games prt7

15 minutes or so.

I had 15 minutes to impress the judges with my presentation.

Challenge accepted.

I immediately reached to the stand with the various paints. I grabbed a brush and picked a wall. I started by drawing the sunset sky, using the colors I remembered having seen from the rooftop last night. Then I proceeded into drawing the sea, a nice turqoise colour mixing with the remaining colour's of my pallete to create an harmonic result. I then used darker colours to add some birds, mostly seagulls but also an eagle.

7 minuted exactly.

I then proceeded into painting myself in the painting. Got my hair up, almost immerged them into the light pink paint. Then I painted my face, my arms and my torso. The judges were indeed looking at me, but I could feel their attention wasn't focused entirely on me. As I leaned towards the wall, my back touching the paint, and as I stretched my arms to cover the horizon line I heard them applauding, even with my eyes closed. Still they were too reserved.

I had to try harder, cause apparently I convinced them for my artistic talent but not for my survival skills.

I then did what I had in mind from the moment I started drawing. I was just hoping it wouldn't have to be neccessary. As I walked away from the painting, I grabbed a knife from one of the stands. And before anyone realised what I was about to do, I threw it directly to the painting.

My knife got stuck in the wall, exactly at the spot were I had drew the eagle.

This time, their applause was full of excitement.

"Thank you for your time." I bowed and left the room.


	8. Before the Games prt8

"You are lucky they didn't get the metaphor behind the eagle." Finnick commented.

There was a specific reason my knife went directly for the drawn eagle, not the seagulls or the dolphin's in the background. The eagle, the symbol of Panem united under Capitol. The symbol of the pain and oppression.

"They wouldn't have given you 12 points if they did."

"I knew they wouldn't. That's why I made it subtle. At first I wanted to stab the President." I answered with a bitter smile on my face. My first thought was drawing the President, disguising myself as him. And then throwing a knife straight to his painted heart.

"You are lucky this room doesn't have any cameras. Otherwise you'd be dead just for mentioning something like that." he commented on my previous statement.

"Do you know what the other tributes did? I talked with some of the mentor's, but no one was that willing to talk. Blight told me that Nathan showed his skills with the axe, and got himself an 8. That's all I know." he asked me.

"I only know about Ellie and Alexia. Alexia made a wreath of flowers and placed on a dummy's head, getting 0 points, and Ellie created a circle of arrows, fired one more and used another to stir it towards the centre. She deserved more than 11." I said.

Alexia purposefully hid her abilities from the judges, even though there was no reason at all. No one learns what you did in your Presentation, unless you choose to talk about it. Still, I felt Alexia was just making her silent revolution. She didn't want to be a part of those Games, and she decided that this was the best way to show her resentment.

"Be careful of that Alexia girl. She is too secretive. And if a girl from District 12 managed to get 11 points, she must be the hell of an archer. Befriend her, or stay out of her sight." Finnick commented.

"She is too secretive, but I am not afraid of her. She wouldn't kill unless she absolutely had to. And I am not befriending anyone in the arena. No alliances, remember?" I said, reminding him of a previous conversation we had.

"I remember, even though I still disagree. However, since you are good in camouflage and pretty much independent when it comes to supplies, you can just stay hidden and wait till everyone dies." he repeated the basics rules of a strategy I had already decided to use.

"Yeah till we all die for the amusement of that sick psycho we call President, and all those Capitol freaks..." I commented in bitter irony.

"You won't die." he answered.

"Does is it even matter? No I won't. But even after I win, what will I do with my life? If I died my death would be for their amusement. But even if I live, my whole LIFE will be for their amusement." my words were full of pain and bitterness, and I could see that they hurt him. I was describing his very own life, after all.

"I am drowning Finnick. Why can't I decide what to do with my life? Why am I here, taking part in these horrible Games? I didn't ask for this! It's drowning me! How does true freedom feel like? I've never felt it." All this oppression, I could feel weighting my chest. All I wanted was to be freed.

"Don't talk like that..."

"Why Finnick? Why can't I say what I think? Scream it out loud? Why?" my voice was cracking and I was about to cry. All these questions... Was there even an answer?

"Because the Capitol will kill you if you do. If you ever dare to even think about freeing yourself from their chains, that's why." he answered.

"I know... But I can't stand it. The chains. The fear."

"You'll have to stand it. For as long as it takes."

"You are from District 4. And you have the ocean in your eyes. The ocean is patient. It doesn't turn a mountain to sand in one day." his words were full of traditional wisdom. But it wasn't that that touched me it. It was that they spoke of revolution.

"One day we will bring Capitol down, do you hear me? Just like the waves bring down the mountain. Just do me a favor and stay alive until then."


	9. Before the Games prt9

That was it.

In less than 10 minutes I would be in the arena...

I could feel the adrenaline rushing through my veins already. It was the only thing that kept my body from completely paralyzing. My heart was beating fast, faster than I had ever felt it beating, and my hands were sweating. Damn, I couldn't stand this feeling of anticipation.

"Mia." Finnick's voice reached me. He was already in the room. When did he open the door? I was so focused in my own thoughts that I didn't even hear him approaching.

"Finnick." was all I could say.

"I don't like the way you wear your hair." his comment really got me by surprise. I expected some words of consolation or encouragement, the things most people would say. But Finnick seemed to know exactly what I needed. To be surprised. To forget, even for some minutes, what made my heart race and chest hurt.

"What do you mean?" I asked full of questions. My bun wasn't something special, it was just a way to keep the hair of my face.

"We are from District 4. We sail the sea, we weave nets and we bread hair. A simple bun is no way for a girl from District 4 to wear her hair." he said simply.

"So, may I bread your hair?" his offer was simple.

"Yes, you may bread my hair." and it was simple for me to accept. His was very quick and skillful and I felt that not a single strand of my long and curly hair escaped as he braided a firm, french braid. It took him less than 5 minutes, but it was perfect.

"Here. That's better." he commented on his work.

"Thanks..." I was grateful beyond words for his simple gesture of support.

"Are you still wearing your pearl?" he asked.

"Of course." I showed him the pearl I was wearing around my right hand. There was no way I could have removed it.

"Great. I hope it reminds you that you are not alone. You never are. I will be watching you every single moment. Me, Mags, Annie, your family... Our thoughts and prayers are with you, ok?"

No, I shouldn't cry... But still I felt tears in my eyes, hanging on my eyelashes and sliding onto my cheeks. I wasn't alone. All these people would be there for me all along, no matter how far away from the arena they were. I wasn't gonna let them down. I couldn't.

"You have the oceans in your eyes. You'll make it through this alive. I know it, Mia." he whispered as he embraced me and dried my tears.

"Thanks Finnick. Thank you for everything." I whispered as I let him go and backed away from his arms. They felt warm and safe, but I had to.

I couldn't let my guard down. Not now.

Cause the time had come.

I was aware of the danger that awaited.

And I was finally ready to face it.


	10. The 67th Hunger Games

67th Hunger Games

This year's Cornucopia surprised me more than anything. It was an island. A small island of, marble? Was it marble or some sort of white stone? I didn't really have much to ponder it.

We were standing at the shore of a lake, near a forest. We were placed in a circle around it, almost 20 metres from each other. I could see Michael and Electra, the girl from District 3, at my right and my left respectively, so I realised we were placed according to our District's number.

At first I thought we should reach the Cornucopia by swimming but then, I realised I was wrong. The island of the Cornucopia wasn't the only piece of marble on the lake. The lake was a circle and the Cornucopia was its centre. And between the shores and the island, marble perimetres of concentric circles, wide enough for someone to jump from one to the other. Some bags were placed on the perimetres closer to us, but I knew those bags contained supplies and weaponry that were barely enough to keep you alive. I wasn't going to head for them.

As I heard the sound that signaled the beginning of the Games, I removed my jacket, to move more freely and decided to retrieve it later. I rushed to the first perimetre. As I run and prepared myself to jump towards the other one I realised something:

The perimetres were floating on the water. The was no wall underneath them.

At that point I realised what I had to do. I took a deep breath and dived, knowing that I'd reach the Corcucopia way quicker that way. I could swim faster than I could run.

As I dived I made another realisation. There were bags on the bottom of the lake too. I dived towards them and picked the one closer to the Cornucopia. Then I rushed to the surface, took a deep breath, and grabbed the Corcucopia bag that was closer to the water. I had to dive quickly, because a knife came towards my way the moment my head showed. I might have been quick, but the Careers arrived some moments before me, and were already bathing the Cornucopia in blood. I saw four bodies getting thrown in the water, and I heard equal canon shots. The sound was overwhelming underwater.

It was hard for me to swim to the shore with the weight of two bags, but I was a good swimmer and I managed. I quickly grabbed my jacket and rushed towards the forest as fast as I could. I run for as long as my legs could keep me standing, and then I collapsed onto the leafy ground, trying to catch my breath. I didn't feel safe, but I couldn't keep going. And even though I didn't feel safe or secure, I felt a bit reassured. I had survived the Cornucopia. And I hadn't only survived it, I had come out of it with two bags. It was difinitely a good beginning.

I soon felt my bated breath catching its normal rythm. My first concern after that was to open up my bags and check what was inside. In this year's Cornucopia there was no weapon stand, just bags, so I couldn't really know what I had ended up with. Still, I wasn't that worried. My weapon of choice was a knife, the most commonly used one.

I opened up the first bag, the one I got from the bottom of the Cornucopia lake. As I blindly searched the black sack I discovered two small axes, comfortably placed on a case meant to get attached to my back. It was very practical but still, I had next to none experience with axes.

"Damn." I whispered, but still I attached the axes to my back.

Inside the bag I found a camouflage kit, that literally made me want to jump up and down in joy. At least I could camouflage myself before sleeping, the only way to keep myself safe and rest at the same time. And resting was very important. I couldn't last three or four days sleepless.

A bottle of water and some canned meat were also pretty promising. They'd last for a day or two, I was sure about it. And still, even if they didn't, I could always fish. There were plently of rivers and creeks around, ending up in the Cornucopia lake. And there should be fish. Or at least I hoped they were.

I then proceeded into opening the second bag, the one I got from the Cornucopia island. I didn't know what to expect, but the fact that it was ON the Cornucopia must have made it valuable. Or at least that's what I told to myself as I impatiently opened it up.

They first thing I grabbed from inside the sack was a knife in a leather case.

"Hell yeah!" I found it really hard not to shout in joy. I quickly unseathed the knife.

The sharp and jaggered edges, the firm plastic grip and the long length... It was perfect. A combination of a knife and a dagger, just the way I liked it. I felt it in my hand a bit, turning it around and practising positioning. It was just like the ones I have used during training, maybe even better. I sheathed it back and placed the case on my belt.

In the bag I found some coils of rope, perfect for weaving nets and setting traps, some water, even more food, a packet of matches and a little flashlight. I doubted I could find batteries to fuel it around, but I still it was pretty helpful anyways. I turned it on and off, to check if the water destroyed it, but I was working perfectly.

Every item in the bag was very practical, so I couldn't really complain. I had no alliance, but still I manage to end up with way more supplies than the average tribute in the Games.

"Proud of me, Finnick?" I thought, but I didn't state in the camera. I was sure he was.

I could feel my wet clothes sticking onto my skin. It was a very unpleasant feeling. I sat down, removed my combat boots and let the water flow out of them. I then removed my pullover and threw into one of the bags. I decided to only use the larger one, and leave the other behind. The supplies fit there just fine. Afterwards I wore my jacket, which was pretty warm, even though it was light as a feather. I still shivered, but there wasn't much I could do about it. Lighting a fire would be like screaming: "Hey I am here! Could some Career finish me off quickly please!?". Getting spotted was the last thing I needed right now.

As I was standing there, ready to start exploring the rest of the arena, I heard the national anthem of Panem playing.

"Oh my... Dead Tribute time." I whispered and looked into the sky. The sun had already set a while ago, since it was already dusk when we got onto the arena.

The first picture was the one of Electra, the girl from District 3.

The boy from District 5 followed, and then the girl from District 8.

Last, the picture of the boy from District 12.

They were all smiling for their pictures, but you could see how fake their smiles were. They conveyed fear, not joy. They were a sickening sight, but I forced myself to keep watching until the projector was turned off and the national anthem stopped playing. The irony hurted me more than my grief for those children I didn't even know. Those children were alive an hour ago, and those pictures of them was a grim reminder that they weren't any more. A grim reminder of how insignificant our lifes were for the Capitol.

I didn't even know their names, except for Electra, but their loss was heartbreaking in a way. And they were only the beginning. 24 tributes minus four equals 20. And 20 tributes left, means 19 death to follow. The number was beyond comprehension. 19 dead children. 19 families broken beyond repair. 19 lifes lost, and endless others destroyed. No. 20 lifes destroyed. The life of a victor was destroyed as well. The nightmares, the fear, the pain. They lingered. No matter how well Finnick hid it, he was probably the saddest man I have ever met. And so was Heymitch, Chaf, Johanna and every other victor I've met.

I could stand there and ponder all those terrible things for hours, but I couldn't. I had promised Finnick that I would stay alive. I had even promised my family to stay alive. So that's what I was gonna do.

As I drived my previous, negative thoughts away, curiosity overtook me. The arena couldn't be just a forest. A plain, simple forest. There must be more to it. And I was willing to find out.

During the night dangers lured, and I was well aware of it. But still, most tributes were afraid of the darkness and prefered to settle down. Light a fire or just curl up in a pile of leaves. No matter what they chose to do, they would most definitely not move around. And less moving around meant less encounters.

I decided to take some precautions and so I used my camouflage kit to disguise my face and uniform in the colours of the forest. It took me some time, but the result was pretty satisfying. As soon as I finished, I got moving.

I walked for an hour or so, when I reached the end of the forest. What I encountered really got me by surprise. A vast wasteland of dry ground, ruins and abandoned buildings was a perfect contrast to both the forest and the Cornucopia lake.

I narrowed up my eyes and tried to look further away. Inside one of the buildings, I could see a fire burning. And then I noticed a guard standing in the entrance.

Even from some hundrend metres away I recognised Basil, the Career from District 2.

"Damn. A fucking Career base."

There was no way I could approach any of the other buildings without getting noticed. It was dark, but not that dark, and the wasteland didn't offer any hiding spots. There was only a small lake of muddy water between the forest and the buildings, but still, I couldn't be sure if it was safe for me to swim it, and I'd rather not take the chances.

I decided to head back to the forest, for now. With the first light of the morning the Careers would go hunting. Tribute hunting. And I wanted to rest and get myself prepared before this happened. Once I heard the first canon shots, I could definitely sneak into one of the buildings. Until then, the forest was the only viable option.

I headed back inside the forest, walking as fast and silent as I could. I had already unseathed one of my axes and I used it to clear pathways blocked by a variety of branches, bushes and thorns that had already started to wound my skin, my face and hands mainly, since my jacket was pretty much covering up my entire torso.

Suddenly I heard a canon shot.

"What the heck?" I whispered and got a better grip of my axe.

The next sound I heard was a howl. And after that, I felt something throwing me on the ground. I instictively pushed it away with my strenght fueled anew by the rush of adrenaline in my veins and then I tried to get my self up from the ground. I felt the weight on my chest again, accompanied by a warm breath all over my face.

There was a wolf standing on top of me.

I used my axe to block his teeth from ripping open my neck, and I kicked it away again, pushing the grip of the axe against its open jaws. The sharp teeth had started to scratch my hands, but all I wanted was to get that beast off me. As I managed to push it away I jumped up and finished it off with a quick hit on the head. My heart was beating faster than I had ever felt it beating before. As I was trying to catch my breath I noticed that dark silhouettes were gathering up around me.

"Fuck!" I whispered in angst. There seemed to be no way around them, and the pack was approaching in every second. I could already hear their angry growls.

I quickly headed to nearest tree and started climbing it.

A wold managed to grab my combat boot with its teeth, so I just kicked the boot away and kept climbing. I didn't stop until I was almost 3 to 4 meters above the ground.

I heard another canon shot shattering the silence.

Apparently, there were more wolves than just the ones that attacked me.

And apparently, some tributes were not as lucky as I was.

The wolves were still lurking under the tree, and I wasn't expecting them to leave anytime soon. I made myself comfortable on a branch and decided to stay there for the night, or at least until the wolves left. No matter how much I disliked being surrounded by genetically engineered beasts ready to rip me to pieces at every given moment, I was safe on the tree. Safe from the wolves and safe from the tributes. With all those beasts around, no one could approach and remain in one piece.

I sure as hell couldn't sleep, given the situation, but still I decided to rest for a while. I drank some water and ate some canned meat I opened up with my knife. Then, all I could do was make myself feel comfortable and wait.

Hours didn't seem to pass quicky and the wolves didn't seem to back away, so I decided to do something productive with my time. I took a piece of rope out of my bag, and started seperating its fibers. Soon enough I had a whole bunch of thin fibers, perfect for weaving a net. It was pretty dark, so I decided to use my little flashlight. It didn't shed much light around, but still, I could weave a net with my eyes closed anyways. I've been doing it ever since I was 5 years old.

Weaving the net really relaxed me, and helped me to almost forget the situation I was in. It was already way past midnight when I started weaving, and I had 3 firm nets ready when the sun started rising. Even though I was working for hours, I didn't even feel tired.

With the first rays of the sun the pack of the wolves withdrawed, heading at the east side of the vast forest.

"Does the arena end there?" I wondered. The end of the arena... Those words fueled my will to escape this teribble situation more than I could explain.

No. There is no end to the arena. Just some stupid magnetic field that either fries you up alive or throws everything back at you. And unless my name was Heymitch Abernathy and I was competing in the Second Quartel Quell, that trick was already old and stale. There was no one in Panem that didn't know how that specific tribute won his Games. At least not in my District, where the Careers never stop talking about past Games and even us, the untrained children, are showed clips of them in almost every school class.

I decided that wondering about the arena was not gonna help me stay alive in any way. But searching around for supplies and finding a hiding spot, maybe even sneaking into an abandoned building, was. I got down from the tree, I wore the combat boot that I had to remove to escape the wolf's bite, and I started moving.

I was on the move when I heard two canon shots, closely following one another.

"The Careers are out hunting." I thought, and decided to be a lot more careful not to draw their attention in any way.

I was searching for one of the creeks I had spotted on the arena earlier the previous day, since now I could easily fish using the nets I made during the night. I was halfway there when I heard a sudden motion from the bushes behind me. I enstictively grabbed my knife and placed my body on a fighting position.

Suddenly a young man emerged from the bushes and full frontedly attacked me. I used my knife to block his attack with a metal glob and I quickly ducked to avoid a new attack. I recognised the boy from District 10, a 17 year old boy. He probably attacked me because he believed a girl couldn't fight back his brute force if he managed to retain the element of surprise.

Well, he was wrong. No matter how strong he was, he was too slow comparing to me.

"I don't want to do this!" I screamed at him as I avoid one of his attacks and scratched his face with my knife, obviously holding back.

He didn't answer, he just tried to hit me again, aiming for my head. He was way more determined now and his hit was harder to avoid. His metal glob landed on my shoulder.

I screamed, not able to stand the excrusiating pain. Still I didn't let my guard down and I fell on the ground to avoid his next attack, meant to finish me off while I was overwhelmed by pain. He tried to hit me again, but I rolled away. I got myself up as fast as I could and in a split second threw my knife to him, trying to stop him from getting any closer to me. My knife penetrated his neck, and his body suddely froze and collapsed onto the ground.

I felt my heart skipping a beat. I immediately got as close to him as I could,and looked at my adversary in shock. His hands were reaching for his throat, desperately struggling to remove the knife and stop the blood flow. He was gasping for air and his eyes were filled in sheer terror.

"No...no." I whispered and tried to stop the blood flow my self. I could feel his warm blood mixing with mine as I carelessy run my figertips across the blade. After some seconds it wasn't just my blood mixing with his. It was also my tears.

Soon, it was all over. The young man stopped struggling, gasping and reaching for his neck. His limbs fell down, all numb and frozen, and his eyes turned into glass. The canon shot just made it official. I closed his eyes shut with my bloody hand, and removed the knife from his throat. As I raised it up high and looked at it I felt the urge to throw it away. Or push it deep within my chest, mix that boy's blood with mine once more. But I couldn't. My family was watching me. Finnick was watching me. I couldn't give up.

I wiped my knife onto my jacket and returned it to its case. I rose up from the ground and took a deep breath. My guilt and my pain were slowly fading. Now I was full of determination and sheer anger.

"Look what you made me do! I am no killer!" I screamed at the top of my lungs.

There was no reply. Just the echoes of the forest and the rythmic sound of the rain that had just started falling. I stretched my arms and raised my head, ready to let it wash away the blood from my hands and the thoughts from my mind. But this was no ordinary rain. The moment I felt it falling on my skin, instead of a cool and soothing touch I felt a burning pain.

"Fuck!" I shouted and started running, determined to find some sort of shelter. The rain was getting heavier and heavier, and now I could feel it soaking through my clothes and sticking on my skin. It hurted so badly I could barely move anymore so I just collapsed in a pile of leaves. I gathered up all the strength I had left and dragged my body near a tree and curled up inside its trunk, where I was at least partly protected by the poisonous rain.

I couldn't really perceive time as it truly was, since the pain was blinding and distorted my senses. The rain seemed to keep on falling for an eternity, though I couldn't tell if it was indeed an eternity, or just some moments. I heard a distant canon shot, and suddenly I knew it. I knew how dangerous this rain was. And how imminent my own death appeared to be.

After what felt like an extended eternity, the rain stopped. I couldn't hear the persistant dripping sound anymore, just some drops falling off the leaves from time to time. I had to gather up my strength once more to drag myself outide my little shelter.

I quickly removed my wet clothes, my jacket and shirt, leaving on only my athletic bustier. First I took a closer look of my arms. That's were most of damage was done. The skin had cracked up in some places and blood was flowing. The worst part was the feeling of acid burn all over them. Afterwards I carefully examined the skin of my torso, to notice that it appeared to be perfectly normal, neither wounded or inflamed.

Since I didn't have any means to examine my face I carefully tried to touch it with my hand and access its situation. I screamed in pain the moment my fingertip run across a huge scratch over my face, which I had got from some thorns in the forest.

Then I realised what had happened. The rain was affecting only wounds already open. Still how could it have affected my hands? I sure had some scratches, but the damage done by the rain was way beyond that.

"The rain reacts with blood..." I thought. My hands were all stained from that boy's blood, so it was natural that they got so badly damaged.

Still that wouldn't explain the pain I felt all over my body. It wasn't limited on my open wounds... Or maybe it did explain it. The poisonous rain reacted with blood. And through my open wounds it had gotten INSIDE my blood.

"Goddamit." I whispered. I was poisoned.

I put my wet clothes back, knowing that they couldn't worsen my situation in any way. The pain had started to go away, replaced by a mild catatonia and headache. It might have been a pleasant change, but still it worried me more than it reassured me. What if the poison was getting deeper within my system and the lack of pain was just a sign that my body was going numb?

I decided that instead of staying there, in plain sight, and wondering whether the poison was strong enough to kill me or not, I had better find a shelter. I kept walking deeper in the forest, in search of some sort of cave or large tree trunk. I soon found it, right underneath a small hill. It was like a swallow cave, but still it was enough for me to lay there camouflaged and wait.

Now my whole body was taken over by exhaust and my headache was growing more and more intense. My vision started growing blurry and I soon started to feel dizzy, even though I was laying down. After a while I felt my entire body burning in fever.

"It..can't end like this." I whispered and felt a single tear running from my eye and dripping onto my facial wound, renewing the pain.

Now the pain had returned and I felt like my chest was going to burst. I was slipping in a near comatose state and I could hardly tell apart reality from dreams, that felt more like hallucinations. At some point I saw my mother and father running away towards the forest and my brother and sister approaching me. Then I saw the boy I had killed coming towards my direction, blood still dripping from his sliced throat. I screamed but it was nothing more than a whisper.

And then, I saw a little parachute landing just in front of my cave.

At first I though it was just another hallucination, so I stood still and waited for it go away, dissapear from my sight just like all the rest. Yet it insisted and I decided to drag my body out of the cave.

It wasn't a product of my poisoned nervous system. The parachute was indeed there. It was a gift from a sponsor. I quickly reached out and tried to grab it, and even though my hands were shaking almost uncontrollably I manage to bring it closer to me. It was a little bottle, full of a bright purple liquid accompanied by a note.

"Drink up. -Finnick"

"I don't think I have much of a choice." I thought, and impatiently opened up the bottle. I drank it all in one sip and I let the bottle slip of my fingers. I coughed since I didn't expect the intense, bitter taste and then I moaned as the coughing had worsen the pain I felt all over me.

"If..this doesn't heal me... The next thing I want you.. to send me... something to kill me off fast..." I whispered, hoping that my mentor could hear me. I couldn't stand it anymore. If I wasn't goint to get well anytime soon, then at least I wanted to quicken my end. He couldn't take that right away from me.

After that I felt my eyelids getting heavier and my thought going numb and blurry. I soon fell asleep among the leaves of my little sanctuary. When I woke up again the first thing I noticed was that the pain was gone. Also, the wounds on my hands and face had started to healing, leaving transparent scars behind. I lift myself up from the ground and took a deep breath. I couldn't grasp how close to death I've been. I couldn't thank Finnick enough... Or I could. By staying alive.

I was pondering those issues when the national anthem started playing. I never liked that specific melody but since the Reaping I had gotten sick of it. From a clearing in the forest I watched the projection informing us about the dead tributes.

Apart from the people that died in the Cornucopia, there where six more deaths. The boy from District 6 and the girl from District 5 were killed by the wolves, while the boy from District 3 and the girl from Disctrict 7 were probably killed off by the Careers. The photograph of District's 10 boy I had to kill sent shivers down my spine. The latest death, caused by the poisonous rain, was the girl from District 10.

This time I didn't even let myself think about those deaths. I couldn't stand it anymore. The guilt, the pain and the sadness for those children I didn't even know. All I allowed myself to ponder was who the remaining tributes were, to realise that, even though we were counting 10 casualties so far, not a single Career had been killed. So that left 5 or maybe more potentially dangerous enemies out in the open. That was worrisome at best.

After drinking all the water I had left in my bottle and eating some canned meat to replenish my stamina I decided to move on. I needed supplies, water and food, more than anything right now. I headed towards one of the broader rivers in the forest and after I hid my bag in a tree trunk, to ensure I wasn't going to have it stolen, started fishing. I spread my nets and patiently waited, scattering some stale bread useful as fish bait, and patiently waited.

Soon a trout got caught up in my nets. I was about to pick it up when I heard the sound of footsteps, not far from where I was standing. I quickly looked around me, to see if there was any decent hiding place around, but I had no luck. I grabbed my knife, and hoped I wouldn't have to use it. I stood still and silent, barely even breathing, ready to run if I had to.

Afterwards everything happened so quickly I can barely remember my actual reactions, since I acted solely on my instict and reflexes. When three tributes emerged from the shadows of the forest I didn't even take the time to identify them. The moment their eyes fell on me I had already started running. No matter who they were, there wasn't a single alliance that wouldn't take on a lonely tribute. And I doubted I had much chances in confronting them.

I kept running as fast as I could, heading towards the abandoned buildings. I was hoping that, even they didn't lose me during the chase they would probably stumble upon the Careers that got left behind to take of the base. The Careers would just try to kill us all, and I could most probably escape during the confusion of the fight.

Soon I exited the forest, the three tributes following me closely.I felt the need to know the identity of those that chased me, knowing that if there was an archer among them, I had no chances out in the open. I had better stand there and fight. I immediately turned my head around only to see Alexia and the two female tributes from Districts 6 and 9, Pamela and Lydia. I didn't know that those three had gotten into an alliance, but I wasn't really surprised by that fact. They were all outsiders and probably decided they could change that fact if they sticked together. I was mainly surprised Mark wasn't a part of their alliance, but still I could see it happening. Maybe him and Alexia didn't want to have to face each other in any possible way.

Unfortunately for me, there was no sign of the Careers anywhere around. My only option was to keep running and entering the first building I saw. I quicly climbed up the stairs, not having much of any other choice. I entered the first room I found, trying to shut the door behind me. Still the hinges where old and rusty and couldn't close at all. I thought about leaning on it, to keep it shut for as long as I could, but then I remembered Lydia's sword. It could easily pentetrate the wooden door. I couldn't risk it. But still, I was running out of options. I backed off, towards the window, knowing that if things got any worse I would have to jump. Well, not that they were room for things to go any worse than this.

The three tributes soon opened the door, and stood in front of me. They knew I was cornered so they hesitated a bit, as it was natural. They weren't killers. I decided that this was my last chance to turn the tables. So, before they had the chance to turn against me I screamed:

"Wait! Wait!" I doubt they expected me to say a word. The surprise was apparent on their faces.

"I am no Career. I am just like you." I started, trying to make sure they would hear me out.

Pamela got a better hold of her knife making me realise that my approach wasn't the best possible one. They didn't want to get reminded I was human. They wanted to kill me, and they wanted to do it without hesitation or remorse. Just like the Capitolians.

"Remember, the Careers are still out there. It's six of them. You are only three." change of plans. If I couldn't make them feel sorry for me, I had to make them realise they needed me.

"And you are also starving." all three girls appeared malnutritioned, and it made perfect sense. The forest was clearly lacking food sources, and not everyone could fish. Plus, the Careers monopolised most of the Cornucopia bags, and the rest of the tributes, excluding me, managed to get only the smaller and less useful sacks.

"I know how to fish. I have supplies. And even though I could have sided with the Careers, I didn't. You have a lot more to gain from me as an ally than from me as dead body." I made my offer, trying to appear as useful and trustworthy as possible.

"She's right." Alexia said simply and the two girl looked at her full of questions.

"She's right! We should stick together, at least until the Careers are out of the Games." she continued.

"Plus, we ARE starving. One more day without food and I don't think we'll have the strength to move, let alone fight. I think we should make her our ally."

I felt more than grateful for that girl I barely even knew. I had a feeling that she didn't do it for her survival. She was doing it for the sake of her humanity.

"Ok then, fishergirl. You are on the team. But if you do anything suspicious, I will kill you." Pamela said, and Lydia nodded in agreement.

I felt unimaginable relief. It was the second time I've been in the brink of death in one single day. I was hoping it would be the last, because even though second chances are abundant third chances are rarely given in life. I tricked death twice, and it was more than enough.

After scouting the entire abandoned building and discovering a a bag of supplies we decided to head towards the forest, to retrieve my bag and fish before the last light of the day faded away. We knew that returning here would be practically impossible afterwards, but still getting trapped here with next to none supplies would be suicide. My worst fear that kept me from returning to the forest was the poisonous rain, but then again now I knew enough to protect myself from it.

I was glad to see that my bag was exactly where I left it. We distributed the remeaning supplies fairly enough and then I proceeded into using my last net, since I lost the other ones, for fishing. I caught two trouts, and decided that they were enough for the day. I convinced my allies to eat the fish raw since a fire would reveal our location. The sun soon started setting and after the meal, when night fell, we arranged who would stay guard. I asked for the second shift, and they accepted it. All fell asleep, except for Lydia, who was first, and me who decided to stay awake and ponder my situation.

I didn't want an alliance. I sure as hell didn't. "The more the merrier" seemed out of place in these Games, where more people meant more trouble. If I was alone I could easily camouflage and hide, waiting for everyone to get killed. Now I couldn't. And as long as I stayed in this alliance, it was certain that I would have to face off the Careers in a full-fronted battle. It was sure better to face them in a group rather than alone, but still I didn't trust those girls' abilities. I doubted a girl that worked her entire life in a train station and two farmers' daughters had any figthing experience at all. Alexia seemed to be handling the javelin fairly well, but Lydia didn't even know how to hold her sword.

So I wasn't even in a dilemma when I decided to leave their alliance. When my shift started I silently packed some of my stuff, leaving behind most of the shared supplies, mostly as a sign of my gratitude. Gestures like that didn't belong here, but in District 4 we were always taught to keep our promises and pay our debts.

I was walking away when I felt a touch upon my shoulder. I jumped up, barely containing a shout.

"Where are you going?" whispered Alexia.

"I don't want any allies. I helped you. Got you food, left my supplies behind. Just let me go."

"I am coming with you." she said simply and I looked at her in shock.

"I don't want any allies. Why don't you understand?" I asked

"If you don't take me with you I'll wake them up." she threatened me simply.

That little bitch.

Since I didn't seem to have any other choice, I nodded in agreement and let her follow me. I thought about turning against her many times, but still, something held me back. I was still full of guilt and remorse for killing that boy. I didn't even know him and he was the one to attack me, but still killing him burdened me more than anything. Attacking the girl that talked to me, adviced me and saved my life... It couldn't do it. Not unless I absolutely had to.

"I want to search for Mark. We got separated at the Cornucopia. He was going to be in the alliance too... But we lost him." she admitted after about an hour of walking silently next to me. So their alliance was probably planned from before the Games... Made sense.

"I am not gonna help you find him, team up with him and kill me." I said simply.

"I had my chances to kill you, if I wanted to. Once we find Mark, you are free to go."

How could I trust her? She didn't give me any reasons not to, but still, this was the Hunger Games. Most tributes would do anything to keep themselves alive. And even though Alexia didn't seem to belong in that category, I was sure she would do anything to keep Mark alive.

"I don't believe you." I said simply.

"Then take this. I am sure an armed girl from a Career District can take on an unarmed girl and a boy that never even got himself into a fight." she handed me her retreatable javelin, after storing it inside its leather case. Needless to say I was in shock. Was she willing to expose herself, to remain absolutely vulnerable just to find that boy? Apparently she was. I stored her weapon inside my sack, ready to give it to her if some threat appeared, and decided to aid her in her search.

We were walking for more than two hours when we decided to rest on a tree until the morning came. Even though I didn't want to, at some point I fell asleep. Apparently, so did Alexia, and I had to wake her up with the first rays of the sun. We kept on our search for Mark, stopping occassionally only to collect berries and other fruits. At some point a sponsor sent us some bread and a small cup of wine we shared, to replenish our vitamins.

At some point we heard something, not very far from us. Alexia started heading there, without a second thought, and I decided to follow her. Suddenly we heard a canon shot and she whispered:

"Oh no..." as she started running even faster.

When we arrived the first thing I saw was Mark desperately trying to fight off a Carreer, the boy from District 1, while two more Carreers approached him. The dead body of the boy from District 8 was lying some metres further, blood still flowing from the open wound on his chest. Judging from the crimson colour of the knife the girl from District 1, Lux Adams, was holding, she was the one who killed him.

"Mark!" Alexia screamed at the top of her lungs and immediately jumped into the battle practically unarmed. Still she got the Career boy by surprise, as she managed to jump on him and throw him behind. Mark got himself up from the ground and got a better hold of his spear. He was about to hit the boy from District 1 that was bare handedly fighting Alexia since his sword fell off his hand when she pushed him down, but Lux soon run towards him and attacked him, so he had to focus on his own battle.

I was standing there, passively watching, thinking what I was supposed to do. I could help my forced allies or wait until the fight was over and finish off the remaining enemies.

"What the hell is wrong with me?" I asked myself. What was the point in surviving these Games if every ounce of my humanity got sucked dry in the process? I couldn't live like that.

I got a better hold of my knife and joined the battle. I saw Alexia getting up from the ground, grabbing a cut-off tree branch to as a weapon. The Career got up too, retrieving his sword, and kept attacking both Alexia and Mark, while Lux joined him. I was about to head towards their direction when the boy from District 9 that had sided with the Careers attacked me. I had to fall on the ground to avoid his attack. He was using a knife, shorter and lighter than mine. He was quick, just like me, and his attacks were all carefully executed in the right time. He was a difficult opponent.

From the corner of my eye I noticed that now Alexia and Mark got separated. Alexia was figthing off Lux while Mark was fighting the boy from District 1. Soon I realised that I didn't have the luxury to let off my guard and worry about District 11's tributes, as my adversary's knife hit me just underneath my diaphragm tearing off my jacket and shirt and wounding my skin, enough for blood to start flowing, but not enough to cause serious damage. I had to fall down to avoid his next hit, and he fell too, getting himself on top of me. I was blocking his knife with mine to stop him from slicing my throat open. I could feel my heart beating fast and breath growing bated as adrenaline rushed through my veins. My hand had started shaking from all the pressure I put onto the knife and I knew that if I didn't do something soon the boy would most probably win.

Suddenly I heard the distinctive sound of an arrow being releashed from the bow's string. The arrow penetrated the boy's neck, just like my knife had in my previous fight, stopping just a couple of inches in front of my face. I took the opportunity to drop his body off mine and get up from the ground. I took ahold of my knife, ready to throw it against the mysterious archer, if she/he turned against me. As I looked around I saw that Alexia had managed to pierce Lux's neck with her wooden branch, using it as a stake. When the Career from District 1 realised his allies were wounded and the canon shots that followed confirmed their deaths, he immediately run away. Mark didn't appear too willing to go after him, so instead he stayed still, applying pressure on his wounded shoulder.

"I think this makes us allies." Ellie, the girl from District 12 announced as she revealed herself from behind the trees. She was still holding onto her bow and arrow, while her posture suggested that she didn't feel like the fight was over yet.

"Allies?" I asked and started laughing whole-heartedly in a manner that almost seemed otherwordly on the arena.

"What's so funny, mermaid?" she asked and pointed at me with her bow. I didn't even bother to raise my knife against her.

"Easy there, warrior princess." I said in an almost cynic manner.

"Just.. I just got out of an alliance and you made me a new one! Dammit, why the hell can't I be left alone huh?" I added, not because I felt like explaining myself to anyone, but because I felt like speaking up my mind.

"I was supposed to be alone in this! I guess you always get things coming your way, don't you Finnick?" this time I was shouting at the camera. I didn't even know why I felt the need to say that. Probably because I was ironic how I, the one that downright refused being part of any sort of alliance, even the Careers, ended up in a situation like this. Apparently Finnick could manage to make things go his way even without interfering. He wanted me to be into an alliance. And now I was.

"You either side with us, or you'll have to take us on Mia. There is no middle way right now. We can't risk you siding with someone else. You are too useful." Alexia stated a simple fact and Ellie nodded. I didn't even know how that crossed their minds. Who could I side with? The Careers that despised me, Pamela and Lydia that I left behind to run away with Alexia or Nathan that I hadn't even come across during the entire Games?

"There are still 9 of us after all. We can break the alliance once it comes down to 5 or 6 people. And I doubt we will all be alive until then." Ellie added simply.

"Ok then. I am staying. But just so you know, the fact that we shared some whiskey on a rooftop doesn't mean I will go easy on you if you try to backstab me." I answered. I didn't want to show any signs of weakness.

"No one's gonna backstab no one." Mark said.

"He is right. If I wanted to kill you, I would just have let the Careers do it." Ellie added to his remark. I didn't really want to admit it, but she was right. She had the chance to let me get killed, but still she chose to save me. Maybe she wasn't that different from the girl that drew black roses on my arm in the training room.

Even though I wasn't in favor of the of the idea of an alliance I had to admit that whatever needed to be done was done way easier and way quicker. At first we decided to collect as many supplies as possible. We managed to gather a huge bunch of berries and edible mushrooms, and the with the assist of my allies fishing became way easier. I cought three bass fish and a trout, which where more than enough to eat for a day. Still Ellie decided to hunt for little animals and birds, but only managed to catch some squirrels which appeared to be mutant and thus inedible. We didn't want to risk it.

We filled up our bottles with water from the river, and I decided to swim in there for a while, since now I had people to watch my back. As I washed away the blood, the mud and camouflage paint off my body I felt rejuvanated to say the least. After a while I started diving, swirling, splashing around like a little child. It was the best feeling I had in days. After I got my self out of the water I used a wet piece of fabric to clean my jacket, since I didn't want to completely summerge it into water. After I was done everyone followed my example and washed themselves in the river, though they weren't as comfortable in the water as I was. It made sense. I doubt District 11 and 12 had rivers or lakes where they could swim like I did in the vast sea of District 4.

"You should show me how swimming is done sometime." Ellie asked me when we all got out of the water and started moving again.

"I can show you in the Cornucopia lake. This river was pretty narrow." I answered and noticed that she smiled at me and nodded in agreement. I smiled back at her. Even though we had pointed weapons our weapons to each other some hours ago, the fever of the battle was the only thing that brought things there. The Games were no place to make friends, but I was sure if I had met Ellie anywhere else we would have ended up sticking together.

We decided to search for a shelter, maybe some sort of cave or strategically placed hill, to camp there and be prepared for a Carreer or wolf attack. We were walking for quite some time when suddenly the earth started shaking, as if some beast was roaring from the depths of the earth. We run as fast as we could, heading towards a clearing, and we got there just in time when trees started collapsing all around the forest. I could hear the sound of the tree trunks as they hit the ground. If trees were falling down I couldn't even imagine how damaged the abandoned buildings must have been. The sound of a canon shot confirmed how serious that damage was.

The earthquake lasted for about ten seconds. Once the shaking stopped we were left pondering what we should do next.

"Be careful." Ellie warned us in a very serious manner as we rose from the ground.

"Some times an earthquake's damage extends over time. The fact that it's over doesn't mean we're safe." She then proceeded to explain that the dynamite explosions in the coal mines of her District often triggered earthquakes that caused severe damage to the buildings and streets. I kept her words in mind and decided to watch my step. I had survived mutant wolves, poisonous rain and hostile tributes. Getting killed in an earthquake would be just pathetic.

After walking for some time, still in search for shelter, I heard something from across a clearing. It seemed like a moan of pain, but I wasn't sure about it. I stood still and looked around trying to find the source of the sound.

"Hear that?" I asked and listened closely.

"It sounds like a wounded man." Alexia noticed. I kept looking around, and soon I found out who was making that sound. I recognised Michael trapped under a tree trunk across the clearing.

"Michael!" I shouted and run towards his direction. Alexia and Mark followed me with no hesitation, while Ellie froze still in her place. I didn't really understand why, but I let her be. Michael was my priority right now.

"Mia.." he mumbled as loud as he could.

"Hey, Mike.. I am.. I am getting you out of there." I said trying to figure out a way to lift off the tree trunk. Something inside me told me that it was futile, but I wasn't ready to give up on him yet. He might have volunteered to join this madness, he might have joined with the Careers but he was from home. I couldn't just leave him like that. How could I face the guilt? How could I face his family?

"Mia... It's no use. Half my bones are broken and I am bleeding. Even if you do get me out there, which I doubt, I will die anyways." he whispered.

"No..No, I can't give you up like that!" I shouted as I run my fingertips across his face, wiping away the dirt and the blood. I could feel tears filling up my eyes.

"Damn Mia. I left you to join the Careers... And you are trying to save me..." he whispered.

"You are from District 4. You are from home." I answered, explaining my reasoning.

"If you really want to save me so much, then kill me. Please, kill me now. I don't want to die a slow and painful death." he begged me to end his life, taking me by surprise.

"I... I can't.." I started but he interrupted me.

"Yes.. You can. It's not murder Mia, it's mercy killing. Please I don't want to suffer anymore. Kill me just like your father killed those divers who got the disease... Everyone admired him for having the strength... for ending their suffering." his breath was growing more and more bated and now I could see blood staining his lips, but still he wanted to speak those words. He wanted to convince me.

The remembrance of my father was strong within me. My father was a diver, the head of my village's divers. When someone got severe decompression sickness, there was no turning back. There was no one in my District rich enough to treat it. My father over those people a quick and painless death, if they desired so. And in most cases they did.

"Mia, he is right. This is mercy killing. It's ok if you don't want to do it. But you doing that boy a favor. He is beyond saving." Alexia whispered in my ear and placed her hand on my shoulder consoling me.

"Ok, Michael. I'll do it. Just turn around and close your eyes. It will be over soon." I remembered my father whispering those words.

"Thanks Mia." his eyes were full of gratitude.

"Please tell my family I love them... My sister... please be there for her... And... that girl from District 8... if you win, tell her family I am sorry. She was just a child... like Trish... and she was begging me..." his voice had cracked now, and tears were running from his eyes. I could barely contain my own.

"Hush, it's ok. She is in a better place now." I didn't really believe what I said. I never believed in Heaven or Hell. But if those words could help him move on in peace... Well, it was all that matter to me.

"Mia...I am sorry. And goodbye." he whispered and closed his eyes. I already had my knife in my hand, so I just took a breath and pierced the back of his neck. His death was instant, and judging from the look on his face, painless. It seemed as if he was sleeping. But the canon shot that followed confirmed that he wasn't.

I stood there, silent, hesitant to move, even breath... Michael was gone. He was never going to swim in the sea of our homeland again. He was never going to walk barefoot in the golden sand and collect colourful pebbles again. He once told me he loved weaving colorfull nets and hanging them in his little sister's, room. Sometimes he even made dreamcatchers for her, so that Trish wouldn't get haunted by bad dreams...

"Thank you." Ellie whispered in my ear, suddenly shattering the silence and awakening me from my thoughts. I turned around to look at her but she had already risen up from the ground and walked away.

Alexia helped me stand up, and I accepted her help. We kept walking in silence, as I didn't want to talk about it, at least not now. The only thing I managed was asking Ellie why she thanked me, but she didn't answer. So we just kept walking until we found a clearing on a natural hill. There were high but easy to climb trees, in case of a wolf attack, and the high ground would be very helpful if we needed to fight off the Carreers. We set camp there, we lit a fire, and we started cooking the the mushrooms and the fish. A little parachute came down from the sky, a sponsor gift for me. It was a bread from District 4, my favourite treat from home. It had a deep green colour, since seaweed were mixed up with the flour during its making. I had to explain that to my allies, as I shared the bread around. After sharing I noticed that there was a piece of paper that accompanied the bread.

"You did what you had to -Finnick"

Was it that obvious how broken down I was that he decided to console me?

The fish and the salty taste of my District's bread was divine comparing to the stale smoked meat I've eating for the last days. I managed to convince my allies to taste raw bass fish with the bread, and Alexia really liked that taste, while Mark couldn't even swallow it. Ellie ate it, but prefered the cooked fish over the raw one. I couldn't choose between the two familiar tastes from home, so I ate both until I was stuffed. I also ate some mushrooms, that were soft and juicy, and some sweet berries because the salty taste of the bread made me crave for something different.

Another advantage of having allies was not having to watch the projection for the dead tributes alone. Alexia turned her eyes away when the picture of Lux, the girl she killed, was projected. The canon shot after the earthquake was apparently Pamela, my once ally from District 6. Her death made me feel sorry, since in a way I owed her my life. When the picture of the boy from District 8 was projected Mark noticed that he was his ally and friend, a truly kind boy. Both Ellie and myself froze in the sight of the tributes we had to kill, unable to turn away just like Alexia did, and too numb to whisper excuses. We just stood there silent, mourning our lost innocence. The last picture projected was the boy's from District 12.

"He was just 12 years old... Young and innocent, just like my little brother. He shouldn't have been here. He never stood a chance." she commented simply.

"No one should have been here." Mark commented and Alexia nodded in agreement.

We were all too broken down and too exhausted to talk. We arranged shifts and tried to fall asleep. Alexia got first shift, Ellie the second, me the third and Mark the last one. I tried to fall asleep, and in a strange way I managed. At first my sleep was heavy and dreamless, thick and tactile like an impenetrable darkness. But then dark dreams haunted me, as the events of the arena returned in my mind. The nightmarish figures of the wolves, the boy from District 10 whose murdered burndened my consience more than anything, the unimaginable pain of the poison rain circulating in my blood and Michael's tragic demise. I barely contained a scream as I woke up during Ellie's shift.

"Easy there, mermaid." she whispered and kept picking the fire with a stick.

"Why do you keep calling me a mermaid?" I asked, after taking sometime to calm my fast-beating heart and catch my bated breath.

"Well.. You are from District 4. You swim like a fish, sing beautifully and have blue highlights on your hair. If mermaids truly existed that's how they'd most probably be like." she explained simply. She definitely had a point there.

"Some sailor in my homeland claim they've seen mermaids...You know, sailors and fishermen are huge liars. They can discuss their imaginary feats for hours." I kept the conversation going. I didn't want to fall back asleep and get haunted by nightmares again.

"It must be fun though... Like some sort of story-telling." she commented.

"Yes it is... Sometimes they even start talking about local folklore and legends, and then it things get REALLY interesting." I explained and smiled in remembrance of the hours I've spent at the fishboats listening to some old fisherman narrating old stories of the Sea Realm.

"Fishermen must be interesting guys to be around... Coal-miners are usually silent." Ellie added refering to the people of her homeland.

"My father used to work in the coal mines too. When he came home he was too exhausted to do anything than fall asleep." she said, sadness apparent in her voice.

"Used to? Where does he work now?" I asked, knowing that the heavy industry of their District was coal-mining.

"He died five years ago. From tuberculosis. Had to keep working till his last days to bring food to the table." this time it wasn't just sadness. It was also anger. She was angry to the people that brought them to those levels of poverty. Levels that forced her father to sacrifice his life to keep them alive.

"My dad lost his leg from a shark. My mother works at the local nursery, and the money are not that good. So both my siblings and myself had to work to keep food on the table. Still, I am lucky enough schools in my District operate at night..." I hadn't lost anyone close to me, and I couldn't really compare my situation to hers, but still it wasn't like I was leading an easy life. I wanted her to feel that she wasn't alone.

We kept talking about our Districts, the people we knew there, our habits. The time of my shift arrived but Ellie didn't seem to feel like sleeping. At some point, she made a pause. I waited to see what she wanted to tell me.

"How old was Michael?" her words were like a punch in the stomache. I was trying to forget. But well, it wasn't gonna be that easy anyways.

"17" I answered simply.

"Just one year older..." she mumbled, more talking to herself and less to me.

"One year older from whom?" I asked, genuinely curious.

"Another boy that died the same way in the 63rd Games. Remember him?" she asked me. I immediately tried to recall those Games in my memory. District 4 had a tradition of training children for the Games, and even the ones you weren't Careers received some basic training and were forced to watch every single Game.

After wondering for a while I faintly remember a boy that chose to save his ally over himself and threw her away from a falling tree trunk. He got trapped underneath it, and as far as I remember she had to leave him behind since the Careers went after her...

"I can't blame you for not remembering him... he was just a tribute after all." Ellie started but I interrupted her:

"No, I do. A young man that chose to save his ally, a girl that got killed by Careers later." I quickly stated what I remembered. It was a tragic love story the kind the Capitolians were dying for. Their own, personal Romeo-Juliet tale. And the ending was equally tragical.

"He was from District 12. And he was my brother." she said simply, leaving me speechless before explaining:

"That's why I thanked you. Jared, my brother, died alone and in pain. The Career's found him, but they deemed his suffering amusing. Still, you ended Michael's pain. And you held his hand till the end. Thank you for that. I didn't want anyone else to die like my brother did."

I stood there, silent, not knowing what to say. That's why she was so distant from the moment we found Michael. That's why she froze still when I run, and hesitated to approach. I couldn't even imagine the pain she must have been through. And I couldn't imagine the pain her family had to go through. Losing a child in the Games was brutal enough. Losing another one would be just... devastating. I immediately hated the Capitol even more. I didn't even know it was possible to hate anything so much, and in such a fiery way.

After that the atmoshere had gotten too heavy for the conversation to continue. Still, I was glad Ellie opened up herself to me. We were in the brink of death. We were in danger all the time. In danger of dying, and in danger of losing our humanity. And our facades only made our efforts much more difficult.

After Alexia woke up both me and Ellie decided to fall asleep. We were too tired from staying up all those hours. We woke up sometime later, not from the rays of the rising sun but from a sudden canon-shot.

"This makes 8 of us now." Ellie whispered simply. We all knew what that meant. Our families were about to get interviewed about us. False hopes about their children returning home alive were about to blossom in their troubled minds. I didn't want this for my family. And I doubt anyone of us did.

The projection of the dead tributes played right away, revealing that the last death was Lydia, the beautiful blonde girl from District 9 that didn't even hold her sword the right way. I couldn't know how she died, but I prayed it was as quick and painless as possible.

"They are interviewing our families now." Mark said, expressing in words what we all thought some seconds ago.

"Why are they even doing this? My family is gonna hurt so much more now when I know. Now that they were allowed to hope again..." he continued, but Alexia interrupted him:

"Their hopes are not entirely false. You're in the final eight, you sure have chances to win."

"Oh stop it Alexia! Just stop it. Stop lying to yourself. I am not gonna win these games. If I am in the final two, I'd rather let the other tribute kill me than attack. Stop making it harder." this time Mark was angry. Almost shouting. Alexia lowered her eyes.

"Just stop. I asked you to kill me from the very first moment. And you refused. So at least let me get killed without interfering! Without getting in the way, and without trying to convince me to become a killer!"

I started to understand what this was all about. I knew it from the very first time that Mark wasn't like the rest of us. He wasn't willing to fight, and I could see it in his eyes. The only reason he hadn't killed himself already was that he was afraid of death. Just not afraid enough to break his conviction. I admired him for that.

"Mark, I couldn't kill you... How could I? And how could I let you die? I killed that girl for you! To keep you alive!" Alexia shouted, ready to cry.

"I never asked you to Alexia... I never did. You always did what you thought was best for me. I know that you did it because you love me. You are more than just a friend. You are family. But now I need you to listen to me." now even Mark was about to tear up, while Alexia was not even trying to contain her tears.

"I want you to kill me. Do it quick, just like Mia did it for Michael. It's gonna be painless, and I am gonna be dying in your arms. There is no other I'd like to die."

Both me and Ellie were standing in silence. This was too personal to interfere. It was between the two of them. Still, when I couldn't but notice:

"If you decide to do as he wishes, I can show you the way."

My words seemed to affect Alexia more than I could have imagined. She suddenly wiped away her tears and and took a deep breath.

"I'll do it." she whispered, her voice full of a strange determination, even though I was still trembling as she barely contained her sobs.

"Lay down Mark. It's gonna be easier that way." I instructed him simply and unseathed my knife. I gave it to Alexia and adjusted her grip. Her hands were shaking, but I was sure that when the time came, they wouldn't.

"Thank you Alexia." he whispered simply, and laid down on the grass, his back turned against us. I showed Alexia exactly were to hit, at the base of his skull, and took my distance.

Alexia counted to three, but hesitated. And then, she counted to three again. And again, and again. I was about to approach and help her, whisper some words of encouragement, remind her how to hold my knife, since it was about to fall off her hand. But before I made a single step she did something I didn't expect. No one of us did.

Alexia turned the knife towards her body and pierced it deep within her abdomen, before I had the time to scream at her. Damn, before I even had the time to realise that she was about to end her own life.

"Alexia!" I screamed and run near her. So did Ellie, while Mark jumped up from the place he was laying and looked at the girl in shock, almost in terror. He froze while me and Ellie run to her side. I took her in my arms, and tried to stop the blood. It was futile, since she managed to severe some major artery and bright red blood seeped from the wound with every beat of her heart. I could feel the rythm in which it was flowing out of her body with the tips of my fingers.

"I.. couldn't do it. I'm sorry..." she whispered.

"Shh, don't talk.. It's gonna be alright." Ellie said and removed some blonde hairstrands of the dying girl's face.

"Mark I... I couldn't..." she started apologizing, but Mark was too shocked to listen. He stood up and run away, deep within the forest.

"Why?" I asked her simply. I wanted to know.

She didn't answer. But her teary light blue eyes spoke a million words. She once told me she was afraid of losing herself to these Games. And when she witnessed her fear turning into reality, she decided to end her life. A life she could have lived in happiness and peace.

"I don't wanna die here... I wanna go home." she whispered with great difficulty. Her words brought tears to my eyes.

"We don't have any flowers to give her..." Ellie mumbled, avoiding looking either me or Alexia in the eyes.

"But we have our paints." I answered and immediately showed Ellie my bag. She was hesitant but she opened it up and brought me my camouflage kit. Alexia stare was full of questions, but when me and Ellie started drawing on her right arm, covering it up in a bright yellow colour and then quickly designed little flowers, snapdragons and tiny wild flowers that bloomed in the vast meadows of her home, they filled up with tears of joy. I was hoping with all my heart that she live long enough to see our last gift to her completed.

After five minutes of collaborating work, we were done. Alexia invested all her strenght in lifting up her hand, and she spent some seconds trying to grasp every tiny detail, depicting it into her mind.

"Thank you... it.. feels like home." these were her last words, as she closed her eyes. I felt her body lifeless in my arms, and soon later I heard the canon shot. I carefully laid her down on the ground, placing her head on a pile of leaves. It was stupid, but I wanted her to feel comfortable. Though I doubted she could feel anything at all now.

Ellie raised Alexia's right arm, and placed her on her chest, in a way the flowers were facing upwards. She then proceeded into doing something I've never seen before. She pressed the three middle fingers of her left hand onto her lips and then raised them up towards the sky.

"What is this?" I asked simply and she answered, without lowering her arm.

"It's from District 12. It means thank you. It means admiration. And it means goodbye to someone you love." she explained. She didn't have to speak another word. I followed her example and replicated the greeting. We both stood like that for some seconds, bidding our ally a last goodbye.

We packed up our supplies and moved away from the camp. We hadn't really decided where to head to next, but we sure as hell couldn't just stay. Alexia death was haunting. It left a deep scar in both our hearts, and we wanted to run away from it, as far away as possible.

We were walking for quite sometime, when I noticed something that made me halt my step. A bright orange flower was blooming onto the branch of a tree. In an ordinary forest this sight would have been nothing but perfectly natural, but here, this wasn't the case. I haven't seen a single flower at my time in this arena. Not a single humble bud, let alone an impressive full-bloomed one, like this.

"What's wrong Mia?" Ellie asked and instead of answearing I showed her the flower. We both approached it, with caution at first, but then, as nothing happened, I decided to smell it. There was no specific odour, let alone a pleasant one as I was hoping. As I took a deep breath I felt a strange burn all the way through my nostrils, as if I had breathed in some sort of acid. I immediately started coughing and backed away from the strange flower. As I covered up my mouth, I felt some drops of warm blood flowing onto my palm from my nostrils.

"What the hell?" I whispered, unsure about what had happened exactly. The flower must have been poisonous in some way.

"Mia, that was stupid." Ellie commented in her own very cynic manner. I wanted to answer, but this time I couldn't. She was absolutely right. What I did was stupid at best, and dangerous at worst. The little drops of blood on my fingertips confirmed that.

We didn't feel the need to further discuss the subject and thus moved on. At first we thought the poisonous flower was just a single occurence, a well-set trap meant to lure careless tributes like myself. But when those deadly flowers started blooming all around us, slowly at first but in a rapidly increasing rate, we knew something was wrong. And when the indifferent, neutral and misguiding scent surrounded us, we knew we were in danger.

I quickly tore a piece of my shirt and wet it in a nearby creek. I tied it around my nose and mouth, hoping that the wet fabric would be able to filter the peculiar poison and the bright orange pollen that surrounded us like an ever-thickening fog. I saw Ellie doing the same.

"Let's get out of here!" she shouted at me and started running. It's not like I needed a reminder to follow her lead.

Soon, as we were running towards the end of the forest, to the abandoned buildings, we heard a canon shot. There was no way I could know, but deep inside I was sure it was Mark. He wasn't gonna run like we did. He wasn't gonna fight it. And in a strange, morbid way, this death was the most appropriate from him.

As we exited the forest we noticed that we were just outside the Career base. This made no sense at all. We had moved around a lot since the last I found myself here... This wasn't right.

"Did they rotate the arena?" I asked, but Ellie didn't manage to answer my question either.

"Why would they do something like that?" I wondered to myself.

"Because they needed some action."

I was true that nothing "exciting" had happened in the last day, ever since we fought the Careers alongside Mark. Sure, Alexia's death must have been a spectacle for the cruel Capitolians, but still, I doubt it was the kind of spectacle they enjoyed. A tribute comitting suicide was an act of defiance, and Alexia's suicide was more than that. It was a reminder that, no matter how far to the edge they pushed us, the choice of how we'd live our lives was ours to make. Or at least, the choice of how to end them.

I removed the piece of fabric from around my face the moment we got far enough from the forest. The once dark gray cloth had turned orange and red, in a sickening combination of colours that appeared dull instead of bright and warm. Warm like the creeks of blood that kept flowing from my nose, forcing me to cough and breathe heavily through my mouth. I turned around and looked at Ellie. Her nose was rapidly bleeding too, and she had leaned to the frony, to let the blood flow without the danger of choking on it. I decided to do the same, after I accidentally breathed through my nose and felt the blood sticking inside my throat, forcing me to cough once again.

Soon the blood stopped, and we felt like our breathing returned to normal. We decided to plan a course of action, since there was no way we could possibly return to the forest, with all the poisonous pollen around. But still, heading towards the abandoned building were equally dangerous. We couldn't know where the Careers were.

Or maybe we could. When the three Careers emerged from the forest, no more than a hundred meters away from us, we knew that we wouldn't have the time to make a choice at all. They were in the same situation we were a couple of minutes ago, their noses rapidly bleeding, but still, that didn't stop them from heading against us in an all-out attack, their weapons readied in their hands. I unseathed my knife and grabbed one of my axes while Ellie took an arrow out of her quiver and aimed to the Careers. Her shot didn't hit a target but it was a distraction.

"This way!" I shouted and indicated a nearby building. The Careers outnumbered us, and once they got close to us, the fight would be over. We needed the coverage a closed space offered, so that I could take them on one by one while Ellie watched my back, protected. We run all the way to the abandoned building and closed the door behind us.

Ellie climbed up the stairs, while I stayed close to the door, or at least close enough to strike whoever entered. The boy from District 1 shattered the hinges with his sword. I took a deep breath a readied my axe. Basil was the first one to break into the room, and I threw my axe at him with all my strength. Still, he managed to duck and avoid it, acting on instinct and truly admiring reflexes. My axe ended up sinking into the shoulder of the girl from District 2, throwing her back onto the door, giving Ellie the perfect chance to pierce her chest with an arrow. The sound of a canon shot followed.

Ellie had the time to land a shot onto the boy from District 1, hitting his left leg. He screamed in pain but still went after her, as she jumped off the stairs and headed to the basement. I did the exact opposite, climbing up the stairs, hoping that the high ground would give me an advantage in fighting Basil, who decided to come after me. I had decided to stand and fight but, as I was rushing, I tripped. I immediately realised that I wouldn't have the time to get into position, as Finnick taught me I should always get while figthing, and that I was leaving too many weaknesses to be exploited by this deadly opponent. Now I had only one choice: To run.

I started running upstairs, quickly crossing the long corridors. I jumped over upturned furniture, and tried to upturn even more of them, making it harder for Basil to approach me. Still he kept following me, and since I was getting closer and closer to the last corridor's end, a dead end to be precise, I had to enter a room.

The room was empty, apart from a table and a wardrobe.

"Fuck." I whispered in angst. What was I gonna do? Jumping from the window was no viable option, I would most definitely break a limb or two, and in the situation I was in that equalled death. What should I do? What should I do?

And then it dawned on me. It was a solution. It was even a clever idea. But it was all I could do at that specific moment. I opened the door of the wardrobe, got inside, and closed it again. There I stood still, and listened.

Basil entered the room soon after me. I heard his steps as he approached.

He unseathed his sword, I heard that, and then took a deep breath. I envied him at that point. I had to hold my breath, since breathing would reveal my position. I had never been stood that motionless in my entire lifetime.

In a split second he pierced the wood with his swords, only a couple of inches away from my waist. After that I had no time to think. It was now or never.

I kicked the door of the wardrobe. The rotten wood broke into tiny little pieces from the strength of my left leg, enhanced from the adrenaline flowing in every vein and artery of my body. I immediately jumped outside, while Basil was trying to unstuck his sword from the wood. It didn't take him more than a second or so, but I had already started heading towards the door. He came after me once again, but still, I was quicker. I soon walked out of the building.

Just some meters away Ellie was trying to lift her self up from the ground, where she layed, surrounded by hundrends of tiny glass fragments. Unlike me, she headed to a lower floor and she had decided to jump from the window of the house, though, in her case, the window wasn't even open. She was scratched all over but the worse damage was done by a sharp stone on the ground that cut through her waist, just underneath her ribs.

"Ellie!" I screamed her name and run to her aid. I helped her stand up, and made a split-second decision about where we should head towards. The forest was our only option, but with Ellie in this situation we sure as hell couldn't outrun the Careers. We had one last choise, that dawned on me the moment I laid my eyes on the river.

The rivers that ended up flowing into the Cornucopia lake didn't start from the forest. I couldn't now where they started, but they were running through the abandoned building area, and that's all I needed to know. I immediately headed to the banks, and Ellie followed me, trying to stop the blood from her wound with her hand. Near the banks there was a little boat. I pushed it into the water and got it. In the meantime Ellie managed to aim an arrow against Basil, who was approaching. This made him stop, realising that, even though one shot missed, he didn't have much chances to reach us without being hit. So he backed away.

Soon afterwards Ellie got onto the boat too, with some of my help. I helped her lay down, and stirred the boat, making sure we wouldn't hit some rock, or even the banks, since the river was narrow and not really deep. Still it was flowing quite fast, and got us inside the forest in no time at all. I was relieved to notice that the poisonous flowers had dissappeared, and the air was clear again. Once we were deep enough inside the forest I helped Ellie stand and jump onto the banks of the river, and then I did the same.

"Are you alright?" I asked, even though I knew it was a stupid question. Of course she wasn't alright, her wound was bleeding and the bone had almost started to show.

"Yeah sure.. Never been better." she answered ironically. The irony wasn't really intented for me, but for the situation. She knew how badly wounded she was.

"Just lay here. I'll fix you up." I helped her lay down, near a tree trunk, and searched my bag for supplies. As I was searching I heard a canon shot. I immediately turned around, to check if Ellie was ok. She was just the way I left her, though she was trying to stand, an instictive reflex to the loud and clear sound.

"Hey, easy there." I said and helped her lay once again.

"You could just kill me you know... It's four of us left, minus myself three. This is the point when alliances break anways." she whispered.

"Yeah sure, alliances break. If you could just get up and walk away, I wouldn't want you around. But now you are wounded and you are still my ally. We'll stick together until you're healed enough to go on your own." I answered. I couldn't kill my ally. I owed her my life, and it was debt I was gonna pay.

"Damn, you are a hothead..." she whispered weakly and then almost passed out.

I started tending her wound immadiately, trying to stop the bleeding. I removed her jacket and shirt, and now I could see the clear extend of the wound. It was deep, but no major artery was severed. She could live, she sure as hell could, but only if I had the proper kit to tend for her...

"Hey Heymitch! You drunk! Have some alcohol spare to save your girl?" I asked to the camera, clearly refering to her mentor. I needed alcohol to clean her wound and stop any infection from spreading. While waiting for a sponsor gift, I opened up my bag, grabbed a spare shirt and tore it into pieces. It was clean enough to be used as a bandage.

Not much later a little parachute fell from the sky. I quickly grabbed it and recognised the label. It was the same beverage Ellie had brought in the rooftop. White liquer, 90% pure alcohol. It was perfect for what I needed it.

Ellie had regained consiousness when I approached her, about to clear her wound.

"Hell no..." she whispered, know how much the alcohol would hurt.

"Shut up and chew this" I told her and placed a piece of fabric between her jaws. She instictevely bited it. Then I proceeded to emptying nearly half the bottle onto her wound. Ellie screamed at the top her lungs, with all the strength she had left. The sound was suffocated from the fabric she inside her mouth, but still her screamed almost pierced my eardrums.

"Ellie, I will have to stitch the wound up, so that it heals quicker. It's gonna hurt." I said, with full honesty. Her eyes widened, but she didn't say anything against it. She understood that it had to be done.

I took out a needle and a long string. It poured alchohol all over them, knowing that I didn't have enough time to light a fire and sanitize it properly. It didn't take me a long time to stitch up the wound, since I had attempted it many times before. Almost everyone in my District knew how to stitch up wounds, since we had all got pierced by a fishing hook at some point in our lives. Removing it and stitching up the wound ourselves was routine.

Once I was done,I used the rest of the fabric to securely tie up her wound, taking a large sip of the remaining alchohol in the process. Small amounts of alcohol offered some lucidity and I honestly needed it right now. I felt the alcohol burning up my throat, but it was more of a pleasant feeling.

Ellie had already fainted, mid-way through the stitching process, and I couldn't just wait for her to wake up. I used a fishnet to catch a fish, and lit up a fire to cook it. Soon, Ellie regained her consiousness. She was still exhausted, but now she could stand on her own. She ate some of the fish and drank two or three handfulls water.

"So you saved me anyways." she commented looking at her bandaged wound.

"You saved me too when I was fighting that Career. Debts should be paid you know." I answered, avoiding to look at her in the eyes.

"So it was just a debt?"

Her question cought me of guard. It was a question I made to myself a hundred times while I was taking care of her. Was I simply repaying a debt, or was I just trying to find an excuse?

"No it wasn't. The truth is, I couldn't just let you die. If I end up surviving this Games, I wouldn't be able live my life with it." I wasn't just being honest with her. I was also being honest with myself.

Soon the sun started to set. We decided to move away from our current position, since Basil and the other Career, if they were both still alive, would be able to follow the river's flow and catch us off guard. Ellie had regained enough strength to move around, so it wasn't much of a dilemma for us.

We were walking for an hour or so, when we decided to settle. We set our camp, discussed a bit about whether or not we should light a fire, and when we both agreed that we shouldn't, we arranged shifts. At first I suggested that I could stay guard for the night, but Ellie insisted on helping too. I decided to take the first one, so that Ellie could at least rest.

During my shift time seemed to pass slowly. Yet, standing there, gazing at the night sky of the arena doing nothing was oddly relaxing. At some point, the projection of the dead tributes started. I was shocked to find out that the canon shot from earlier was for the boy from District 1. That left only myself, Ellie, Basil and Nathan.

"How the hell did he die?" I thought to myself. There was no way the wound Ellie got him could have killed him. And we were close enough to the abandoned building area to understand whether or not something had happened there. And then it dawned on me.

Basil had done it. I was sure about it. The boy from District 1 was wounded. Still, it wouldn't take a long time to heal, especially with some sponsor gift. And Basil must have considered him his primal rival, since only 5 of us were left at the point. So he decided to get rid of him, when he had the chance.

Just the thought of it made me sick. How could you kill you ally? I could understand it if it was just the two of them left, if they had no other choice, but not now...

These thoughts preoccupied my mind until the end of my shift. Ellie woke up by herselft, and stood guard. I fell asleep almost right away. I hadn't realized how much I needed it.

After a while Ellie woke me up, way before the sunrise.

"What?" I whispered, still sleepy.

"Sponsor gift." she said and I stood up from where I laid. Ellie was holding a bottle of a strange, bright red liquid. She had a small piece of paper on her hand.

"It's from District 12. We brew it during spring, using fruit and various plants. It's a tonic for the coal-miners." she explained and drank a large sip. Judging from the look on her face, the taste and texture must have been pleasant.

"Though this must be enhanced, because the effect is way more intense. Here." she said and passed me the bottle. I didn't hesitate a second. The liquid had a pleasant taste of wild forest fruit, raspeberries, blueberries and strawberries mainly. The effect was almost instant, as I felt all my exhaustion fading away.

"Fuck you, Heymitch." Ellie said and smiled to the camera while I was drinking. Once I was done I gave her a questioning stare. She passed me the little note she was holding.

"Don't share -Heymitch" that's all that was written on it. A message from her mentor. A message Ellie decided to clearly ignore, in an almost provocative manner. I couldn't help but laugh a bit, with the irony of the situation. Ellie's relationship with her mentor hadn't changed a bit.

Ellie didn't say a word, she just laughed herself. We just stood there for a while, laughing, almost forgeting our worries as we shared the peculiar verbal tonic. That was until we heard a low, deep groan coming from across the clearing. It was a sound I had heard before. It was the sound of the mutant wolves.

"Shit. Wolves!" I shouted and grabbed ahold of both my knife and my remaining axe. Ellie had already readied her bow. As the first wolf approached, she aimed an arrow at its head, and killed it immediately. Still, more wolves emerged from the woods. The more we killed the more seemed to appear and soon we were both out of breath. There wasn't a time in my life during which I was more relieved that when those mutant animals started backing away.

Still that sense of relief didn't last for a long time. A scream I found oddly familiar echoed through the woods, moments later.

"Nathan!" I shouted and started running towards the place where I thought the scream had come from. Ellie hesitated, but followed me some seconds later.

Soon I was in another clearing, where I saw Nathan lying on the ground, desperately trying to fight a wolf that had climbed onto him with his bare hands, since his axe was lying a couple of meters away. I immediately run to his side and killed the wolf with a sharp hit that penetrated its skull. I pushed the dead wolf away and leaned over Nathan.

"Mia... Ellie... I am so glad you're ok..." he whispered gasping for air the moment he laid his eyes on us.

"Shh, don't talk. You're making it worse." said Ellie while I was inspecting his wounds. I don't think there was any way it could be made "worse". The wolf had tore the flesh underneath his ribs and over the stomach with its sharp teeth, and blood was flowing rapidly each second that passed. I was disheartened. I didn't know if there was any way I could save him, and that hurted me... I didn't want to live Micheal's death again. And Nathan was more than Michael. Nathan was a friend. Not an ally, but a friend.

"No... It's... I'm dying." he said, in a way that indicated he had accepted the situation maybe more than we had. It was a strange form of relief for me, but still it didn't stop the tears from filling up my eyes.

"My...necklace. Take it off." he said to me and weakly pulled the chain from around his neck. I carefully unbid it, to discover that he was wearing a beautiful, silver plate with the letter "M" engraved onto it.

"Give it to...Mary. And tell her I love her... I'll always...do." he whispered, as life was flowing out of his dying body with every drop of his blood that stained the muddy ground. I put the necklace in my pocket, and promised him that I would. Both me and Ellie held his hands, till he closed his bright green eyes. A canon shot followed.

Soon after the canon shot, just before I was about to get up from the ground and move on, a parachute fell from the sky. This time the sponsor gift was a single white rose and a note from Nathan's mentor:

"You couldn't save him. Now save yourself.

PS: You know what to do with that rose -Blight"

Of course I knew what to do with that rose. A white rose, the same rose President Snow, the most feared monarch, was always wearing in his pocket. Without a second thought I tore all the petals apart and scattered them all over Nathan's dead body. Ellie looked at me, with clear hesitation in her eyes. What I did was dangerous. But still, it was dangerous only if people realised the meaning behind it. Just like the eagle in my presentation.

"He loved white roses." I said simply.

Me and Ellie stood still for a couple of moments. The sun had just started rising and we felt the need to feel the first rays caressing our skin. It felt cleansing.

"He had a good luck charm too, didn't he?" Ellie asked, commenting on Nathan's necklace.

"Why you have one too?" I asked.

"Yeah." she pulled a leather string from around her throat to reveal a beautiful replica of a small black rose, similar to the one she had drawed on my hand. The craftmanship put in it was amazing.

"My father made it. It's from coal. He loved carving small pieces of it."

"It's beautiful..." my remark was definitely not enough to describe it, but it was all I could put in words.

"I have this." I whispered and showed her the little pearl around my hand.

"It fits you, Mia Pearl." she commented.

"I think we should go on separate ways now. It's only 3 of us..." Ellie said simply after some moments of silence but was interrupted. Both me and her had to jump in different directions to avoid a giant fireball that passed between us.

"Just run!" I shouted and started running. Ellie did the exact same thing. The rate in which the fireballs were releashed against us was rapidly increasing, and it was getting harder and harder to avoid them. Fireballs were used pretty often in the Games, but usually they were used early, to kill off as many tributes as possible. What would they need them for now?

The answer dawned on me as I avoided an other one. I knew this part of the forest. I knew it too damn well. And I know where we were forced to head towards. We were heading towards the Cornucopia. They were trying to gather the remaining tributes there, so that we would end up killing each other in an all-out final battle. The kind of battle the Capitolians enjoyed, and were discussing until the next Games aired.

"We are heading to the Cornucopia!" I told Ellie when we ended up being close to each other.

"Oh my god.." she whispered, realising what that meant.

"Take my axe. If you end up fighting Basil you're gonna need a melee weapon." I said and gave her my axe. She hesitated a bit.

"Ellie, take my fucking axe. I am a knife person, I don't need it anyways." I said and this time she accepted it.

"Good luck Mia!" she shouted as she run away to evade another fireball.

"Good luck Ellie." I whispered but she was already too far away to listen to it.

I kept avoiding the fireballs, and headed straight to the Cornucopia. At some point a fireball was about to roast my left leg but I avoided at the last second. While I thought things couldn't get any worse, I reached the Cornucopia.

It was much different from the last time I've seen it. The marble of both the island and the transitionary tiles had craked and moved around. The lake was now full of small and narrow marble pieces, large enough to hold 3 tributes at best. But that wasn't the worst thing about it. The worst thing about it was that the water was boiling. I could feel the waves of heat even from the ends of the forest. I approached the water and tried to touch it with my finger tip, but the vapors were too hot to even do that. This was a major disadvantage for me, as I couldn't move freely around the Cornucopia as I did in the beginning of the Games, but also a major advantage for anyone who was psysically strong enough to throw his opponent into the water. And that sounded like Basil.

I was the first one to arrive in the Cornucopia. Basil came second, almost at the other side of the lake. He was about to head towards me, when Ellie appeared. And Ellie was just in the middle.

"Fuck." I whispered and jumped onto a marble tile. If Ellie was able to hit Basil before he approached him, she wasn't in danger. But the vapors of the boiling water were reducing the visibility, especially in long distances. No matter how good her aim was, it wasn't a shot she could land. I tried to reach Ellie, I screamed at her to come my way. But she didn't listen. Not only did Basil head towards her, but she also headed towards him, as if she had decided to full-frontedly attack him as well.

Soon I ended up watching a fight I couldn't do anything at all to stop. Basil was fighting with his long dagger he was perfectly used to, while Ellie was struggling with my axe. She was pretty quick, and steady on her feet, but she lacked strength and experience. She was obviously losing ground, not without wounding her opponent though. Still it wasn't enough. I tried to reach her, help her as much as I could, but before I approached, Basil managed to pierce his dagger onto her chest, right above her diaphragm. Ellie fell to the ground, trying to stop the bleeding. Basil turned his back to her, ready to face his last opponent. Me.

"You motherfucker!" I screamed at the top of my lungs. Pure anger was flowing through my veins. That Career son of a bitch had just killed my ally and friend. Or even worse, he had left her there, mortally wounded, to die slowly and in pain. He wasn't gonna get away with it.

I jumped onto the next marble plate, and so did he. He covered the distance of another plate, and soon he was there, right in front on me, his dagger still stained from Ellie's blood. I was the first to attack, and I almost got him, as he didn't expect the power and precision of the attack my anger fueled. Soon we were both dancing in a deadly dance of blades, perfectly synchronized. He might have been a lot more experienced than me, but hell, I was angry. He couldn't beat that. He was too emotionless to.

Still, as time passed I grew tired. And that affected my speed and reaction time. I was starting to get dissapointed, afraid that maybe I wouldn't be able to end this fight. Afraid that this bastard would end up being the 67th Games victor. While these negative thoughts were overtaking my mind, I heard a familiar sound. The sound of an arrow flying rapidly towards its aim. And the aim was Basil.

Ellie's arrow pierced his shoulder right above his chest. It wasn't that much of a serious wound but it was painful enough. Painful and distracting enough for me to throw him onto the cold marble ground and submerge his right hand, the one with which he was holding his weapon, into the boiling water. He screamed in pain. I took a deep breath, lifted my knife and pierced through his diaphragm. The sound of the canon shot was almost immediate.

Still I didn't stand there to think about it for even a second. I got up on my feet right away, and I run to Ellie's side. As I jumped to the plate onto she was laying, my left foot got submerged into the boiling water. I screamed, as the pain was immense and piercing, but I somehow managed to drag my body to her side.

"Ellie..." I whispered breathless as I leaned over her. Her bright brown eyes were wide open, staring at me. Her bow was still in her hand, after the final shot that saved my life.

"Saved your ass again, didn't I?" she whispered and smiled at me. I couldn't help but smile back, even though tears were flowing from eyes, sliding onto my cheeks and ending up onto her face, mixing up with some of her blood.

"Hey, don't cry... Please don't." she said, in a more serious manner.

"Ellie I... I am sorry... I..." I managed to mumble through my sobbing. I felt the need to apologize. She saved me, but I couldn't... For the first time in my life I was in a debt I couldn't repay.

"No need to be sorry... I'm sixteen. My brother was sixteen too... It's the curse of the family I guess..." she answered, melancholy imminent in her voice.

"I just hope Roy... I hope Roy lives." she added, referring to her youngest brother.

"He will live. I promise." I don't know how I could promise something like that, but I sure as hell knew that if her brother ended up being in the Games too, I would do my very best to keep him alive.

"And you stay loyal to your word. I know. You always did." she anwered. I didn't have the strength to disagree with her... Not now.

"But still you never told me how it feels like to swim you know." she said simply after some seconds of silence. It was a contradiction to her previous statement, but it was the last thing I could have thought about in a moment like that.

"You want to know?" I asked and she answered with a simply nod of her head.

"Well, it feels like you're flying but the air feels thick and tactile. It surrounds you in a safe embrace, and you are not afraid of falling. It almost feels like freedom..." I couldn't really put it in words, since swimming was more breathing to me. Can somebody explain how it feels to breathe? This was the best I possibly do.

"Oh... Just like the song you sang in Capitol... Can you... sing it for me?" she asked me, while coughing and gasping for more air. Singing was the least I could do for my dying ally... My dying friend.

"Sure." I asnwer and took a deep breath, trying to calm my sobs and tears. I took hold of her hand and started singing my song:

_Will you, will you come along with me?_

_Beneath the waves, within the sea? _

_Here, the dolphins sing a lullaby_

_Will you, will you listen to it with me? _

_Here, the water makes you feel you fly_

_Will you, will you fly away with me?_

_Will you, will you come along with me?_

_Here, beaneath the waves, where we can both be free?_

_Will you, will you come along with me?_

_Beneath the waves, withing the sea?_

As Ellie closed her eyes and I felt her grip weakening I whispered the final line, barely able to hold back my tears, barely able to even breathe:

_Here, beaneath the waves, where we can both be...free?_

The moment my song was over I heard the final canon shot. The 23rd one. The canon shot that officially announced Ellie's death. The canon that officially announced my victory...

I never thought I would feel this way if I won the Games. I never thought it would be pleasant or satisfying, but I thought that I would feel relieved. But I felt no relief. Only sorrow.

I was dead inside. Was there gonna be a canon shot for that?

Soon I heard a hovercraft approaching, ready to pick me up and fly me away from the arena. But not yet. I had something to do before leaving.

I stood up, ignoring the pain of my burnt left foot. I turned around and looked at the camera. Then I pushed the three middle fingers of my left hand onto my lips, and raised my hand.

"She tought me this means thank you, admiration, and goodbye to someone you love." I shouted.

"People from District 12. Ellie's family. Thank you for your child! I admired her more than anyone... Goodbye, Ellie."

After speaking those final words, I fell on my knees and everything went blank.


	11. After the Games prt1

I was standing right outside the door, accompanied by two peace-keepers. I didn't understand why that was necessary. Did they think any of the mentors in the room where going to attack me for killing their tributes? Those old victors knew the rules better than I did. All I was going to get from them were reserved congratulations, and maybe some looks full of hatred. That was all. Still it would be enough to wreck me even more. What was with this stupid tradition?

"The new victor must greet all the mentors. It's the first step for integrating into high society, love." my stylist had explained. Well, her explanation might have made sense for a Career or a Capitolian, but not for me. What if I didn't want to be integrated into high society?

What if I just wanted to be left alone for a change?

Well, it wasn't like I had a choise anyways. The peace-keepers opened up the door for me and I had to step inside. I had to take a deep breath and pretend I have pulled my self together. Pretend I wasn't going through a break down. I couldn't show that to the world.

The first one to greet me at the door was Finnick Odair, my mentor. Well, the word greet is poor to describe our meeting. He hugged me tightly and whispered:

"You did it girl. You did it."

I clinged into his embrace, not wanting to let go. He was the only person reminding me the reasons why I fought. The reasons why I stained my hands with blood. Finnick, his arms, his scent, they reminded me of home. They reminded of my District, of my family, of my friends. I had to put enormous effort into not bursting in tears. And I had to put even more effort into letting go first. I was always the one to let go first. Maybe because he was going to wait for as long as I needed it anyways.

The next mentor to approach me was Blight.

"Please tell me you didn't lose that necklace." was the first thing he said to me. No congratulations, no "the odds were in your favour after all." I felt grateful for it.

"Of course I didn't. Maybe you can give it to Mary?" I asked him, avoiding to look him in the eyes. Nathan's death still burdened me, even though I couldn't have done anything to save him.

"He asked you to do it remember? You can find her during your Victory Tour." he said simply and I nodded in agreement. I made a promise to Nathan, and I was going to keep it. I don't know if talking to me, the one that was near Nathan during his final moments, would give the girl any closure, but I sure hoped it would.

I was about to move away from him, when she grabbed my shoulder and pulled me close, to whisper in my ear:

"The pain doesn't go away. You get used to it."

His words of consolation were very simple, but at least granted me some relief.

Except from Chaf, Alexia and Mark's mentor who hugged me and thanked me for being there for Alexia, the rest of the mentors weren't that expressive towards me. Most simply congratulated me, some other didn't even do that. Enobaria, Basil's mentor almost growled at me, baring her famous sharpened teeth, her trademark and weapon of choice. Still she didn't seem angry. For her Basil must have been just another failure. She just disliked me. Well, I could clearly see why. I was as far from a Career as you could get, all the odds were against me, and still I survived. Why? I didn't even know myself.

The reaction that shocked me the most though, was the one of the mentor from District 10. He wasn't angry at me, he didn't hate me for killing his tribute. He just looked at me, silent, with a look one his face that appeared more compassionate than anything. He felt pity for me. Well, maybe he felt the same pity for himself.

The last mentor I had to greet was Heymitch Abernathy. The sole victor from District 12.

"Heymitch... Ellie was...She was amazing" I mumbled. Well, that's definitely not the way you start a conversation.

"She was an amazing combination of brave and stupid... Let's see what I'll say to her mother." he answered ironically.

"Don't talk about her like that. She ended up being 2nd place. She was brave." I answered, not stopping to consider my words for even a second.

"I said that right now. Are you deaf, or just slow?" this was a clear insult, but I ignored it.

"She managed to end up 2nd place. That's a great feat." I whispered, my voice cracking. What the hell was I talking about? Ellie was dead. The fact that she died last didn't mean anything to those who loved her.

"Shut up girl. Please. Are you stupid or just ignorant? You don't seem to understand that the reason why she ended up being 2nd place was that she sacrificed herself. She chose to fight Basil so that it didn't come down to the two of you. She chanelled all that bravery into an indirect suicide. And she did that to save your ass, and probably her psyche. Whatever." he said in a direct and straight-forward manner, leaving me speechless. He then proceeded to add:

"I am not saying she would have won if she didn't do this. I am not saying she would have won if you broke the alliance earlier. Maybe she would, maybe she wouldn't. Still, this doesn't change the fact that she chose to die. She chose to die just like her brother did. In the arena, without losing herself. She was always doing things her own way, and that's what she did once again."

"What she did..." I mumbled but got interrupted:

"It was amazing, just like you said. But it wasn't fitting for the Hunger Games. I just hope I won't have to deal with any more emotional archers. They are the worse kind."

I took a deep breath before adding what I really wanted to say since the beginning of the conversation:

"I just wanted to say thank you. For Ellie. For keeping her alive. I am sorry I couldn't save her." it was the first time my words made some sense during this conversation. And the first time I expressed what I really felt inside. And Heymitch seemed to understand that.

"There nothing to thank me for. I did my job. And you tried your best. If you hadn't taken care of her she would have died from that wound you know." he said, referrring to the her figth with the Career from District 1.

"And if it wasn't for her I would probably have been killed by that boy from District 9, or by Basil. It's not how this goes." I answered.

"She was not just my ally. She was my friend. And I am sorry that I couldn't save her. It will haunt me forever." these final words seemed to touch him. I could see it deep within his eyes. For a moment, I realised that he perfectly understood the way I felt. Maybe because, during his Games, he had found himself in the same situation I had found myself in. Losing an ally and friend without being able to do anything about it.

"Drinking helps, but it's temporary. Don't start it." that was all he said, looking at me in the eyes. I clearly understood what he meant. It was some honest advice, I intended to struggle to follow. Drinking clouded the mind and made all problems seem distant, but if I gave in, it was gonna ruin me. Ellie died to keep me alive, and it was my duty to live my life with dignity.

After some seconds of silence, I hugged Heymitch. He hesitated at first, almost shocked by my gesture. But then he wrapped his arms around me too, in a most fatherly way I definitely didn't expect. Still, it offered me as much relief as Finnick's embrace, maybe even more.


	12. After the Games prt2

I looked myself into the mirror. Damn my stylist had done some great job. Again.

I was wearing a long, beige dress with golden glitter, that seemed to be made out of sand, rather than fabric. The turqoise ends were obviously respresenting the waves crashing onto the shore, a reference to my homeland. I was barefoot once again, though this time there was no tattoo or anything decorating my legs. The emphasis should be put in my dress and crown, not my bare legs. I needed Finnick's help to convince my stylist not to dye my hair blonde to match my Victor's crown, but leave them just the way they were. So she settled for perfectly straightening them, and breading some strands.

"This way the crown stands out." Finnick had said, and even though he did just to convince her not to go overboard, he was right. My golden crown indeed stood out, almost sparkling on top of my head. Still, no matter how beautiful it was, there was nothing I wouldn't give to turn back time, and never having to receive it. Or actually never having to compete for it.

"Stunning. Still, you should get used to Capitol's fashion." a voice echoed from across the hall. It was a familiar voice I've heard lots of times before, but never in an actual meeting. It was the voice of President Snow.

"This is Capitol's fashion, President. In my District we can't afford luxuries like this." I answered simply, avoiding to look at him in the eyes.

"And apparently you can't afford shoes either." his remark was degrading, but I didn't mind. That man disgusted me to the core, and this insult was the last thing I minded.

"Congratulations on you victory, Mia Pearl. As it seems, the odds were ever in your favour." he added after some moments of silence. These words were rutine, so I expected to listen to them. I thanked him, avoiding to look inside his cold eyes any longer than neccessary.

"Oh, and about that rose..." he added, as I felt my heart skipping a beat. He had noticed. Of course he had.

"Since your friend liked them so much, you can honour his memory by wearing one tonight." he took the white rose out of his coat's pocket and approached me, to place it onto my hair. He was too close to me, and I could feel his scent surrounding me. He smelled like roses and... blood. Or, to be precise, his breath smelled like blood. It was revolting.

"Thank you, President Snow." this was probably the greatest lie I've told in my entire life.

"Just make sure you don't pluck it's petals too... It would be a shame." there was a hidden threat in his words.


	13. After the Games prt3

I jumped up from my bed, screaming. Another nightmare. Another fucking nightmare.

Finnick bursted into the room, and run to my side.

"Nightmares again?" he asked and I nodded in agreement.

"If it helps at all, we will be arriving in District 4 this morning." he added as he sat on an armchair next to my bed, making it clear that he was going to stay for as long as I needed it.

"It does. I just want to go home."

Simple as that. I wasn't naive enough to believe returning to my District was going to solve all my problems and drive my nightmares away, but I would at least be surrounded by my family and friends. It would help.

"You know, Annie has nightmares too. I check on her every night, but still, it's not good enough. I hate it when she wakes up screaming with no one at her side." he whispered, with pure sorrow and concern in his eyes.

"It's always the same dream. I get reaped for the Games, again, and I die. That's where it gets diverse though. Every time I die in many different ways." he added.

"You know Finnick... I was thinking that Annie could move in with me." he looked at me with a questioning stare before I explained.

"Annie doesn't have a family or anything. But I do. She can move in with me in Victor's village. The houses there are too damn huge anyways." I knew that Finnick couldn't move in with Annie, even though they were a couple, since the Capitolians wouldn't really be fond of the idea. After all, their affair was a secret. So my suggestion relieved him to say the least.

"That would be amazing." he answered a took a while before adding:

"Plus, now when I am checking on her to see if she has nightmares I can also check on you. I feared I wouldn't have any time to sleep myself."

I laughed slightly at his comment, but felt the need to ask him:

"So, you don't have nightmares or anything?"

"I do. But I've gotten used to it."

"You know, Blight told me the same. That you get used to the pain."

Finnick stood there for a while, in complete silence. And then he simply said:

"He was right. No oneswins this Games without losing a piece of themselves. Without breaking down. Some break down less than others, because they made sure they didn't get attached to anyone midway. Like me. Some others break down because they lost people along the way. Like you. And some others break down because they weren't made for this." he waited a while before adding:

"Still, we are all survivors. And if we survived these Games, we can survive life. Pull ourselves back together and do our best. It's not like it's easy. It's not like the pain ever goes away. But we can fight it." His words brought tears to my eyes. When did I become so sensitive?

"I am figthing it Finnick. But sometimes it's not as simple as that..." I whispered at looked away.

"Still, I know I have to pull myself together. Dammit, Ellie died for me. I owe her that much. I can't just let my life crumble to pieces... I am stronger than that."

"I know you have the ocean in your eyes, Mia." his words were full of certainty. He believed in me. He always did. Now all I had to was believe in my self too.


End file.
